One must recognize that China has seen a larger expansion in the magnitude of renewable energy generation capacity in the last couple of years. It is a remarkable achievement and is something that Africa can learn from. With Africa attracting only 2% of the global renewable energy investments, the continent is aspiring to increase its installed capacity, but it needs capital, Chinese among others, to reach its sustainable development goals. AfDB has been investing over the past years in renewable energy with more than 86% of its total investments in power generation going to renewable energy projects The self-described pan-African bank seeks, among other things, to provide electricity access to 250 million Africa by 2030 through its desert-to-power electrification flagship program in the Sahel region.
An integrated African energy system sounds ideal to solve the continent’s energy crisis and lack of access to electricity in some parts. However political instability and lack of local and foreign capital in the African energy sector are expected to burden the continent’s progress towards a green future or the net-zero goal set for 2050.