Get Africa out of darkness with increased investment in mini grid electricity

COVID-19 is pushing Africa into an education crisis. Out of the 39 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, full learning is only taking place in six of them.

While governments have explored offering schooling through alternatives, such as distance learning, it has proven problematic. This is because virtual learning is delivered via gadgets such as computers and smart phones which are powered by electricity.

Indeed, less than 48 per cent of Africa’s population of around one billion people have access to electricity according to a 2018 World Bank report . In absolute numbers this means that an estimated 600 million Africans are living in darkness, literally, relying on wood fire, kerosene and other forms of dirty energy for lighting.


Right

The world recognises access to energy as a basic human right,  which is why the UN adopted this as its Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7. One of the major obstacles to ensuring that everybody enjoys this right is the high cost of generation, transmission and connecting users, particularly in far-off, low population areas.

Read: Africa’s growth not robust enough to end joblessness - Ofori-Atta ...

In countries where 100 per cent access has been achieved, such as Europe and the Americas, this has been done through investing in mini-grid electricity, which helps light up remote areas. Africa is no different and therefore has much to benefit from this largely untapped technology.

Whereas national grids transfer power from dams, power stations or the likes of Kenya’s Naivasha geothermal fields to urban settlements, mini-grids cover much shorter distances and serve localised populations in rural settlements.

Usually running up to 10kmin radius, they tap power from the sun or wind, store it in batteries and distribute it to users, allowing them to enjoy electricity even when they are living tens of miles away from the national grid.

Besides connecting remote communities, the decentralised systems use clean energy sources of wind and solar, lowering harmful emissions responsible for climate change.

Their place in ensuring 100 per cent electricity coverage has been confirmed through a recent survey by the Africa Minigrid Developers Association (AMDA) which found that the mini-grid sector was growing quickly, with operational, installation and capital costs decreasing by as much as 60 per cent over the past five years.

As a result, it costs a national utility such as Eskom in South Africa or ECG in Ghana, a minimum of US$1500 to connect a customer to power compared to only US$733 for a mini-grid company such as Powerhive in Kenya.


Decentralised

Using data from 28 companies in 12 African countries, the survey found that the decentralised systems offered better service reliability with power generated 99 per cent of the time, compared to main grids at 72 per cent. This means that the smaller units actually suffer fewer outages and breakdowns compared to larger systems.

These findings have once again reminded us of the opportunities we continue to waste by failing to exploit our freely available and abundant clean energy resources. They are a wakeup call that we must take advantage of innovation such as mini grids to overcome some of the daunting developmental challenges we face.  

A network of renewable-powered mini-grids, stretching out across the continent’s more remote areas will ultimately strengthen Africa’s resilience to unseen shocks like Covid-19. Had Africa invested much sooner in mini grids our children would be learning remotely from home today.

The writer is the Director of Power Shift Africa, Nairobi-based Energy, Climate think tank
E-mail: madow@powershiftafrica.org