Background
Africa possesses a wealth of untapped renewable energy resources, yet millions lack access to electricity. The continent's potential in solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal energy offers a transformative opportunity to meet its energy needs sustainably while driving economic growth and diversification.
The renewable energy landscape in Africa presents a paradox: despite being rich in renewable resources, the continent has some of the lowest electricity access rates in the world. Millions of people live without a reliable power supply, which hampers economic growth and development. The transition to renewable energy is a strategic move to address energy poverty. It aligns with global climate goals by reducing dependency on fossil fuels, which are often subject to volatile prices and geopolitical tensions.
Renewable energy in Africa is more than just an environmental solution; it represents a significant opportunity for economic transformation. The shift towards renewable energy can lead to job creation, the development of local industries, and the enhancement of energy security. The private sector's involvement is crucial in this energy transition. Private enterprises bring innovation, investment, and efficient project management capabilities, which can overcome limitations typically faced by public utilities and government-led initiatives. The private sector's role is not limited to investing but also as a key player in job creation and local industry development.
Despite the opportunities, significant barriers impede private sector involvement in renewable energy across Africa. The major challenges are financial constraints, regulatory hurdles, infrastructure deficits, and market risks. This webinar aims to address these challenges by bringing together diverse stakeholders to discuss actionable strategies and share best practices drawing insights from a recent policy brief commissioned by the Africa Policy Research Institute (APRI).
Objectives
- Provide a comprehensive overview of Africa's renewable energy landscape, highlighting its potential and current development status.
- Examine the critical role of the private sector in driving renewable energy projects and investments.
- Identify key challenges faced by the private sector, including financial constraints, regulatory hurdles, and infrastructure deficits.
- Explore successful case studies of private sector engagement in renewable energy projects across Africa.
- Propose policy recommendations and strategies to enhance private sector participation and foster a thriving renewable energy sector.
The Panelists
Ayo Ademilua
Panelist
Ayo Ademilua (MBA) is the CEO of A4&T Power Solutions, a renewable energy development company providing access to electricity through SHS distribution and Minigrid development. He is a climate change awareness ambassador with a resilient passion towards partnerships that supports the SDG goals. His background is in Finance and Strategy, with specialization in organization strategy, growth planning and process re-engineering.
Nnadozie Ifeanyi – Nwaoha
Panelist
Nnadozie Ifeanyi-Nwaoha is a distinguished energy and sustainability consultant with over nine years of experience in the energy sector. His expertise spans a wide range of areas including regulatory and policy advisory, climate change, renewable energy, transaction advisory, project management, tariff design, financial modeling, due diligence, business risk analysis, data analysis, and market research.
Najim Animashaun
Panelist
Najim is a non resident fellow of APRI focusing on the political economy of energy. He has over thirty years experience as a legal and regulatory advisor. He also develops renewable energy projects in Nigeria and west africa.
Moderation
Habiba Ali
Moderator
Habiba has been in the renewable energy industry since 2005. She co-founded the Developmental Association for Renewable Energies and worked as National Coordinator. She worked on the Clean Development Mechanism project Efficient Cook Stoves for Nigeria, the Solar Lamps Assembly and sales training program, and the solar dryers for healthy foods project.