Experts discuss financial needs for energy to Africa
Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) Africa Hub held it fifth Annual Africa Workshop under the headline ‘Financing the Pipeline’, where over 70 participants from public and private sector, financial institutions, developments partners and civil society participated in debates.
The debates where about the need for a country-led coordination of the implementation of SEforAll Action Agendas and to leverage SEforAll Investment Prospectuses to fast-track investments towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals 7 targets in Africa.
The workshop was opened by Rachel Kyte, Chief Executive Officer of SEforAll, Andrew Herscowitz, Coordinator of Power Africa, Daniel Schroth, Adviser to the Vice-President for Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth and representatives of Hub partners from African Union, NEPAD and UNDP.
Kyte saint the progress made by a number of East African countries in providing electricity access that needs to be replicated and challenged the donor community to be less risk avers, faster in deploying resources and more focused on supporting under financed areas such as clean cooking.
While Herscowitz emphasized the importance of getting a few deals across the finishing line to demonstrate viability and attract more investments. Schroth added that current efforts towards universal energy access are falling short and that there is a need to find solutions to move faster collectively.
The discussion confirmed the continued relevance of the SEforALL Action Agendas and Investment Prospectuses but underlined the need to strengthen the involvement of the private sector in the development of Investment Prospectuses to make sure they respond to their needs, to improve project screening and to transform the IPs into living document to capture the evolving nature of the pipeline and the sector.
These recommendations are in line with the key priority areas of the Africa Hub for the coming year which are strengthening of the Investment Prospectuses, institutionalization of the processes at country level including through the establishment of National SEforAll Secretariats and mobilization of financing.
