Africa’s unified power grid edges closer to reality

The African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM), an ambitious initiative to unify the continent’s electricity grids, is making substantial strides, according to African Union (AU) officials at a high-level technical meeting in Addis Ababa.

AfSEM aims to create a seamless, affordable, and reliable continental electricity market, interconnecting all 55 AU member states. Kamugisha Kazaura, AU Commission’s Director of Infrastructure and Energy, emphasized that the project lays the foundation for a clean, competitive, and secure energy future for Africa, where over 600 million people still lack electricity access. Kazaura hailed Ethiopia’s grid links with Sudan and Djibouti and ongoing interconnections between Kenya and Tanzania, which now synchronize with Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). These efforts are crucial steps toward full East African and Southern African Power Pool integration by 2027.

“The dream of AfSEM is coming to life,” said Simbini Tichakunda of AUDA-NEPAD, calling AfSEM an “energy revolution” in light of its potential to transform Africa’s economic landscape. The AU is also driving “Mission 300,” a joint effort with the African Development Bank and the World Bank, to deliver electricity access to 300 million Africans by 2030. The Addis Ababa meeting has been focused on reducing investment risk, harmonizing regulations, and rallying political and financial support to operationalize AfSEM. Kazaura also commended a number of partners and donors supporting the “Mission 300” initiative, including the Africa Development Bank, European Union as well as the German government.