Despite all this potential in East Africa, solar still contributes less than 2% of East Africa’s electricity mix. Hydro leads the way at about 54% and hydro’s share is still growing significantly, followed by natural gas at about 14%, then geothermal at about 12%.

Through a collaboration with the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Lab (RAEL) at the University of California, Berkeley, the Congo Power initiative is exploring how innovative energy solutions can improve livelihoods and resilience across communities in East & Central Africa.

Remote regions of the world such as Alaska, once viewed as disadvantaged due to a lack of conventional grid infrastructure, have proven to be fertile ground for sustainable energy innovation. This innovation flows from challenges associated with providing reliable electricity without the benefit of traditional transmission and distribution systems.

Nigeria’s Minister of State Petroleum Resources said, “It is unacceptable in this modern age that 600 million people in Africa have no access to electricity, and 900 million have no access to clean cooking fuel. Our imminent mission should be to rescue this vast number of our people from this grip of unjustifiable abject energy poverty.