Slide of the month (SOTM) May. Renewable energy in sub-Saharan Africa

The African continent offers an ideal environment for electricity generation from renewable sources. Therefore, it is not surprising that sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) already ranks third worldwide in terms of percentage of electricity generated through renewable sources. Roughly 27% of electricity generated in 2015 was generated through renewable sources. Lesotho, Ethiopia, D.R. Congo, Central African Republic, Namibia, Zambia, Uganda and Malawi rank best, as they generate more than 90% of their total electricity output from renewable sources.

However, as of 2015, 91% of the renewable energy generated in SSA was generated from hydropower. The continent’s abundant solar, wind, biomass and geothermal resources are yet to be exploited more efficiently.

The Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI), established in 2015 and operating under the mandate of the African Union, aims to add 310 gigawatt of additional renewable energy generation capacity to the continent until 2030. This brings also other sources of renewable energy than water into focus and creates high opportunities for international technology and service providers in the renewable energy sector.

Read more slides of the month here: