Without reliable and well-run power infrastructure, companies don’t invest and grow, and economies fail to reach their potential. Low rates of electrification in many African countries have been identified as the most pressing obstacle to economic growth, more important than access to finance, red tape, or corruption.

In Africa today, around 600 million people have no access to electricity. For those that do have a connection, their consumption is only 20% of the global average. Improving the quantity and quality of power in Africa has the potential to alleviate poverty, promote industrialisation and improve gender equality.

Despite recent investment and improvements in electricity generation, the lack of progress in developing transmission and distribution infrastructure is a significant bottleneck to economic development across Africa.

This underinvestment is largely a result of unsustainable and loss-making business models that are unattractive to public or private capital and create ever-increasing financial burdens on governments. The hundreds of billions of dollars of capital needed to electrify networks to absorb current and planned generation far surpasses the investment available from African governments and foreign donors.

With African economies expected to grow at an average of 4% per year between now and 2040, governments, multilateral banks and private investors all have a role to play in funding the network improvements needed to support economic development. These improvements are also vital to integrate renewable resources and energy storage, helping African countries reach their climate change commitments.