DANIDA and the UNEP Riso Centre Sustainable Energy for All: Powering Africa 24 th September 2012, Eigtveds Pakhus, Copenhagen Access to sustainable energy in Africa Status and Challenges Youba SOKONA ACPC/UNECA

Guinea's G'bessi Airport, Conakry Between 1999 and 2002 schools in Guinea had a modest pass rate of 30-35% Since 2003 that has dropped to between 20 and 25% Source: BBC Any opportunities should be identifies and exploited to achieving goals

Introduction UN General Assembly has declared the year 2012 as the “International Year of Sustainable Energy for All” aimed at promoting global access to sustainable energy for all by 2030 The initiative has a set of three specific objectives: – Ensuring universal access to modern energy services – Doubling rate of improvement in energy efficiency, and – Doubling share of renewable energy in the global energy mix The initiative is both an opportunity and a challenge for Africa

African energy systems Dual nature of energy system with co- existence of traditional and modern systems and practices Traditional biomass use of households and requisite mechanical energy for agriculture and transport often rely on human and animal labor Urban/rural split in terms of distributions of energy systems and practices

Observations Development is Africa’s most important priority and access to modern energy services is a key pre-requisite Initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable energy access in the continent are not new Many of such initiatives in the past did not provide meaningful results It is crucial to identify and analyze critical issues, barriers and opportunities that will affect the implementation of SE4A

What is energy access? (1) It is ambiguous and no clear universally accepted definition Used within a particular context Electricity access referred to as number of households supplied Lack of access to clean cooking facilities referred to as households relying only for cooking on traditional biomass and 3 stones

What is energy access? (2) IEA :“ a household having reliable and affordable access to clean cooking facilities, a first connection to electricity and then an increasing level of electricity consumption over time to reach the regional average” ADB:”any or a combination of the following: (1) provision of electricity and motive power to households, (2) improvement in the supply and delivery of energy services, (3) provision of modern fuels and/or efficient devices for cooking and/or heating, and (4) provision of finance to access energy These definitions address the need for expanding and having energy access to services confined to the households’ energy issues

Energy access goes beyond household and basic need Sources: AGEC (2010)

What do we mean by energy transitions? They are fundamental processes behind development of human societies They refer to change in one state of energy system to another one in terms of quantity, structure of end-use and supply, and quality They drive and are driven by technical, economic, political and social changes They are “a particularly significant set of changes to patterns of energy use in a society, potentially affecting resources, carriers, converters, and services

Energy services delivery analysis is crucial for adequate approach of energy transition

Energy transitions are adequate framework to address energy access Source: adapted from Global Energy Assessment (2010)

Recently Africa’s growth has been widespread… 12

560 million sub-Saharan Africans lack access to electricity..and it needs energy to keep growing..

Critical issues to explore for and adequate energy transitions/access Respective roles of fossil fuels and renewable energy systems Role, prospects and barriers for development and/or expansion of electrifications Readiness of supply and end use energy technologies to the prevailing conditions in Africa Energy policies and institutional frameworks Energy planning and service expansion Energy financing Climate change including Short Lived Climate Pollutants imperatives

Electrification challenges Electrification linkages with economic activities Low rate of electrification Many firms and productive sectors rely on own- generators Low generation capacity and low efficiency High generation costs and excessive price of electricity Poor state and low capacity of electricity infrastructure Over 80% of electricity generated is from fossil fuel Wide disparities of electricity access between urban, peri-urban and rural areas

Pre-requisites for SE4A in Africa African ownership is fundamental Institutional and policy innovation are vital Adequate prioritizing investment will be crucial Endogenous technology development and deployment is important

Moving towards SE4A in Africa How do we – Stimulate the political will and vision? – Orient institutions to deliver the vision? – Access and/or use financing to support the transition? – Link short term imperatives and long term necessities

Any difficult journey such as SE4A in Africa requires innovation

Thank you Youba Sokona