Mission 300 Energy Summit: A watershed moment for Africa's energy future

The just-concluded Mission 300 Africa Energy Summit in Dar es Salaam marks a pivotal shift in how the continent approaches its energy crisis, from fragmented national efforts to a coordinated continental strategy backed by robust financial commitments and political will.

African leaders brought stark clarity to the challenges and opportunities ahead in achieving universal electricity access.

Ethiopia's President Taye Astike Selassie Amde highlighted the need to build on past progress. "Despite achieving an overall access rate of 54%, a staggering 60 million citizens still lack access to electricity,” he said.

Benin's Vice President Miriam Chabi Talata shared her country's journey from energy dependency to increasing self-sufficiency. "Since 2016, we've undertaken to produce our own electricity to end…dependency [on Ghana and Nigeria]. Today, we produce 50% of our energy," she said. Benin relies on a combination of solar, thermal and hydroelectric generation, while creating an enabling environment for investors.

Ghana's President John Mahama emphasized the critical importance of implementation, noting "you must get your last mile right and get the governance, especially if it's a state-owned utility, you must get it right."

Summit participants endorsed the need for goal setting. As President Amde noted, Ethiopia has set an aggressive target of achieving universal electricity access by 2028, requiring the electrification of 3.4 million households annually.

Private sector participants pushed for bold reforms, particularly in transmission and distribution. "The private sector is not yet as involved as it should be in financing the energy sector in Africa...” and engaging it in financing electricity transmission will be critical, said IFC Managing Director Makhtar Diop.

TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné highlighted infrastructure constraints: "When you build a renewable energy plant, you must then transport that electricity, and that is where the challenge lies." AMEA Power Chairman Hussain Al Nowais, whose company operates in 20 African countries, called for developers to invest in distribution networks while emphasizing the importance of currency convertibility and streamlined administrative processes.

The World Bank and African Development Bank's joint commitment of $48 billion represents not just financial support but also paves the way for the crowding in of additional resources from other stakeholders.

"No one can do it alone," World Bank President Ajay Banga emphasized. "Governments cannot do it alone. Businesses cannot do it alone. Philanthropies cannot do it alone. Development banks cannot do it alone. But together we can."

To catalyze private investment, the IFC announced a new $1 billion fund for companies working on decentralized renewable energy and off-grid solar solutions in Africa. Industry leaders also stressed the need for sovereign guarantees and local currency financing.

As Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority CEO Aminu Umar-Sadiq noted, "Capital structure is essential. Equity is critical, but it is also important to attract equity in local currency."

The summit also marked a shift in donor-recipient dynamics. Rather than traditional aid relationships, announced partnerships reflect a more collaborative approach.

Via video link, President Emmanuel Macron of France committed his country to invest €1 billion." "Universal access to electricity is critical to get justice for Africa. This is a shared fight, and we will win it with all the heads of states and governments of Africa who are here and all our partners from the civil society and also financial partners that are joining us."

France also pledged €10 million, as a new donor, to the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA), a multi-donor facility unlocking private sector investments in renewable energy. Denmark, the UK and Spain increased their existing contributions to SEFA by €13.4 million, €10.13 million and €3 million, respectively.

African Development Bank Group President Akinwumi Adesina highlighted tangible progress, noting that "the share of the population with access to electricity in Africa significantly increased from 39% in 2015 to 52% in 2024." However, he stressed that with "571 million people still without electricity, accounting for 83% of the global population without electricity... we must take decisive actions to further drive down these numbers."

The Dar es Salaam Declaration directly addresses these challenges by committing governments to reforms in utility management and procurement transparency, while calling for private sector participation through supportive regulations and innovative financing. Development partners pledged to increase concessional resources and technical support to accelerate implementation.

Looking ahead, the immediate focus will be on translating commitments into action. African countries are ready to "provide the business environment that will make it easier to achieve this agenda," said Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema.

During the African Union Summit in February 2025, the Declaration will be presented for continent-wide adoption. At the same time, the twelve countries that presented Energy Compacts during the summit will begin implementing their reforms, serving as test cases for Mission 300’s approach. They are: Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, and Zambia

African nations also took a decisive step forward on clean cooking at the Africa Energy Summit. Their energy compacts contain commitments to address a crisis that kills approximately 600,000 women and children annually across the continent and carries health and economic costs of nearly $800 billion annually.

The event showcased innovative solutions, including pay-as-you-cook LPG models and efficient biomass stoves; host Tanzania highlighted its national strategy targeting 80% clean cooking adoption by 2034.

As Tanzania's President Hassan emphasized, "This summit goes beyond energy access. It is about empowering families, lifting millions out of poverty and providing hope and opportunities for youth." The next 12-18 months will be crucial in demonstrating whether this new approach can deliver where previous efforts have fallen short.”

Cover photo:  A historic gathering in Dar es Salaam saw African leaders and development partners commit billions toward universal access to electricity and clean cooking.