1. Mr. Annan has issued a Call to Action.
This appeal is the ultimate key message of the “Lights Power Action” report.
The report also highlights action already underway within the continent and globally that should be scaled up.
Overall, the emphasis is very much on catalyzing urgent actions to ‘Electrify Africa’.

2. The first key message is that: The SDGs Will Only Succeed If They Succeed in Africa
Energy is the ‘golden thread’ connecting growth, equity and sustainability.

3. As the slide shows:
achieving SDG7 (“Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”) holds the key to achieving the majority of the other Sustainable Development Goals.
Yet…

4. …Africa’s Energy Deficit Is Large and Growing
Accelerating access to electricity in Africa is urgent.
Although 145 million Africans have gained access to electricity since 2000, in many places electrification has not kept pace with population growth.

5. Energy gaps between countries and within them also are a cause of concern
Unless the electrification rate increases, the number of Africans without access in 2030 will be the same as it is today: 620 million, or almost two-thirds of the population.

6. The report shows that there are now numerous opportunities to be seized to transform energy systems in Africa.
An integrated approach is needed to make this transformation a reality.
Governments need to adjust policy frameworks and investment to support integration of centralized as well as decentralized energy.
Doing so will speed up the energy transition, may reduce the cost, and is likely to result in faster expanded access.
Triggers for transformation include:
Decline in price of renewables
Innovation in technology, business models, and payment structures
Ever-increasing demand for electricity
All are helping to spur a shift from a linear and static energy system to one that is transformative and driven by innovation.

7. Our report places a strong focus on off-grid solar power because of its dramatic growth on the continent.
Off-grid options
are cheaper in rural and remote areas, and off-grid technology is advancing rapidly.
offer families an “energy ladder” they would otherwise have little chance of increasing their level of access.
are now the most economical sources of electricity for more than one-third of the African population who lack access to electricity.

8. Lights Power Action’ also argues that mini-grids – which can be grid-connected or independent – offer the potential solution to addressing the “missing middle”.
They offer a number of advantages over grid extension and off-grid household systems.
Yet they are expanding in Africa at a slower rate than in other regions and more slowly than off-grid household systems.
We show how the mini-grid experience in Asia and North America offers African governments and their partners some valuable lessons, notably about finance, regulations and innovation.
The last part of the report is dedicated to a discussion on mending and extending the grid and the regional dimension.
This includes a special focus on: Africa’s energy theft and loses

9. We note that electricity losses, including electricity theft, are a problem for distribution companies worldwide, but nowhere more so than in Africa.
Africa’s high transmission & distribution losses, from inefficiencies as well as theft, can amount to as much as 50% – well above the industrialized country average of 7% – and represent a major challenge for the power sector.
Their severe impacts on the quantity and quality of energy supply, as well as the attendant economic costs, are felt throughout the power chain.
How Theft and Losses are being tackled:
Technical methods
Managerial Methods
System change
The report ends with an evocation of Africa’s potential to leap forward by harnessing the emerging forces shaking up technology and energy markets worldwide.

10. Africa’s huge energy needs have sparked a greater sense of urgency and a higher level of ambition across the continent,
This new report shows how to sustain and extend that urgency and ambition, by using every available means to accelerate electrification – on and off the grid, via projects large and small.
We also evoke Africa’s potential to leap forward by harnessing the emerging forces that are shaking up technology and energy markets worldwide.

11. Policy Insights and Recommendations
Build supportive and coherent national policy frameworks
Lay foundations for off-grid solar industry
Mini-grids Strategy
Boost renewable energy supply
Support investment in centralized/decentralized energy solutions
Make power sector reforms work for all
Finally, overall policy insights and recommendations can be summarised as follows: 
Based on the particular context and what is already underway or in place, African countries need to:
Build supportive and coherent national policy frameworks for electrification strategies
Lay the foundations for a vibrant off-grid solar industry
Design an adequate strategy for mini-grids
Boost renewable energy supply and its integration into the national grid system
Support investment in both centralized and decentralized energy solutions 
Make power sector reforms work for all

12. Download the report at:
Thank You
Download the report at:
Thank you
You can download the report on our website: