Sub-Saharan Africa’s “vast renewable energy resources” could meet almost half the region’s power needs by 2040, according to a new analysis by the International Energy Agency.
But SciDevNet has a different take on a “bittersweet” report, noting that: “Nearly one billion people will have access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2040, but projected population growth means that 300 million people will remain in the dark.”
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While solar will lead the growth in renewable generation, the report also points to huge potential for wind, geothermal, and hydropower development. The region’s economy has been in rapid growth since 2000, Valentine notes, and a lack of electricity for two-thirds of the population—about 620 million people—has been a major impediment to development.
