Africa’s Energy Deficit: The Solution Is Simpler Than You Think

Anita Otubu

The Blog Series on a Just Climate Transition by the University of Oxford Climate Alumni Network (OxCAN) delves into the complexities and challenges of the issue, while proffering tangible solutions and pathways. In this post, Anita Otubu, Senior Director, Universal Energy Facility at Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) advocates for more investments in sub-Saharan Africa’s renewable energy sector to enable universal access to electricity, thereby improving living standards while curbing carbon emissions.

666. It might seem overly symbolic, but 666 million people still live without electricity globally, according to the most recent tracking of SDG7 [1]. To put it in perspective, that is almost 10% of the world’s population. An ominous number, and a fitting starting point for a discussion on how to achieve universal energy access. 

However, even this number fails to capture the full picture of the global energy deficit and its impact on greenhouse gas emissions. After all, having access to energy does not mean the same for everyone. Globally, around 250 million people have only what is known as Tier 1 energy access – enough to charge a phone and light a few bulbs for a few hours a day. Their average annual consumption is just 22 kWh per person, compared with 3,081 kWh globally and 6,720 kWh in high-income countries. For sub-Saharan Africa, energy consumption is 82 percent below the world average [1].

Poor energy access, however, does not eliminate the need to cook, drive, and carry out the everyday activities that keep a household running. Which is why so many rely on diesel or petrol gensets. The global fleet of backup generators amounts to a staggering 450 gigawatts – roughly matching the output of 1,000 coal power plants. Sub-Saharan Africa has the largest regional fleet in the world, where CO₂ emissions from generators are nearly 20 percent of those from vehicles – equivalent to about 22 million passenger cars on the road. 

In other words, the lack of energy access leads to multiple, often overlooked losses: higher emissions, undignified living conditions, and limited opportunities for industrial development – which in turn suppresses living standards and curtails opportunities for growth.  

The good news is that we can solve this. Africa receives more solar energy than any other continent; enough to power the world many times over. In addition, there is more than enough technology to utilize this – but unfortunately not enough money. It is often said that we live in the “age of electricity,” a claim underscored by the enormous flow of capital into the global energy sector. In 2025, investments in the clean energy sector are set to rise to USD 2.2 trillion. That is almost 75% of the aggregated African gross domestic product (GDP) [2]. 

However, only 2 percent of these investments reach Africa, roughly USD 44 billion – and that figure is 30 percent lower than in 2015 [1], [2]. From an investor perspective, the cost of finance is too high and the perceived risks too great. Weak regulatory frameworks, currency instability, and limited local financing make investors demand higher returns. In short, Africa’s challenge isn’t a lack of resources; it’s a lack of affordable, reliable finance.

To achieve universal access to modern energy and meet development goals, Africa needs to double its annual energy investments to over USD 200 billion annually by 2030. But how do we make that happen?

One way is through results-based financing (RBF) mechanisms that have proven effective across the African continent. The Universal Energy Facility (UEF), managed by Sustainable Energy for All, is one of such RBF. The UEF is a multi-donor fund which pays clean energy companies once they have delivered verified electricity connections to people who previously had none, or need more to scale businesses. Eligible companies include mini-grid developers and stand-alone solar home system providers, which power productive-use technologies such as cold storage, irrigation, or electric machinery.

Since its launch in 2020, the UEF has expanded rapidly, supporting projects in Benin Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Madagascar, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and Zambia. The results demonstrate what can be achieved when international organisations create confidence for investors in high-risk markets:

● 13,120 new or improved electricity connections;

● Over 3,800 businesses and public institutions, such as hospitals, powered;

● 25,000 tons of CO₂ emissions avoided, the equivalent to over 396 million smartphones charged. 

Africa holds enormous potential as an energy-producing continent – perhaps the greatest in the world. But only finance can unleash this potential. That’s why we must safeguard and expand international energy partnerships such as Mission 300—the World Bank–led initiative to electrify 300 million people in Africa by 2030—and Universal Energy Facility–led programmes such as the EU funded SOGREA programme, while raising awareness of their importance. Only then can we light homes, power hospitals, reduce GHG emissions, and drive industry for the 666 million people who still live without electricity and the 250 million who have only Tier 1 access.

Anita Otubu is the Senior Director of the Universal Energy Facility at Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), where she spearheads the results-based financing initiative aimed at enhancing renewable energy accessibility and reliability across sub-Saharan Africa. She was previously the Head of the Project Management Unit of the $550 million Nigeria Electrification Programme (NEP), under the Rural Electrification Agency. Anita is a member of the knowledge network of the United Nations Office of the Special Adviser on Africa (UN-OSAA), Technical Advisory Group of the World Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP), Advisory Boards of GOGLA and the African School of Regulation, Joint Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) for AfDB’s Africa Mini-Grid Market Acceleration Programme (AMAP) and UNDP’s Africa Minigrids Program (AMP), and previously a member of the Expert Advisory Group of the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTI).

References

[1] International Energy Agency; International Renewable Energy Agency; United Nations Statistics Division; World Bank; World Health Organization. (2025). Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report 2025. https://www.irena.org/Publications/2025/Jun/Tracking-SDG-7-The-Energy-Progress-Report-2025

[2] International Energy Agency. (2025). World Energy Investment 2025. https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-investment-2025 087

Blogs are the opinions of their authors and do not represent the official views of OxCAN.