Africa’s energy transition topped the agenda at the recently held Nigeria International Energy Summit in Abuja. And the reason is simple – the continent has the youngest population in the world and it is expected to be home to nearly 2.5 billion people by 2050. 80 per cent of them will live in Sub-Saharan Africa, where less than half of the population currently have access to electricity, and just 16 per cent have access to clean cooking fuels and technologies. The continent’s energy transition is a tall order. It has been estimated to cost $100bn annually between 2020 and 2040 for Africa to transit from fossil fuels.

Although the cost is humongous, the consequences of climate change are costlier for the continent. As part of efforts to transit to clean energy, South Africa pledged to achieve with an investment plan to fast-track its transition to renewable energy.

During the COP26 summit in Glasgow, the President, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd) pledged that Nigeria would cut its carbon emissions and reach net zero by 2060. He stated that gas has a crucial role to play in the country’s energy transition roadmap.

The government also promised to deliver and maintain 5 million new solar connections under a ‘solar power strategy’ as part of the country’s energy transition plans.

It also plans to distribute 10 million cylinders of Petroleum Liquefied Gas into circulation nationwide to increase access to the commodity and dissuade people from unclean energy sources for their cooking.

Some of these initiatives were tied to the Sustainable Energy for All Agenda which Nigeria, alongside 44 other African countries signed on to advance sustainable energy and increase access for all Africans.

However, while the Western countries are clamouring for Africa to accelerate the development of its massive renewable energy sources, experts say Africa must also be given time to transition and allowed to use its natural gas as a transition fuel, just like it is the case in Germany, as well as Europe. “What is acceptable for Germany and Europe must be acceptable for Africa,” they argued.

In his keynote address at the conference, the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbanjo, explained that Africa can be much more effective in developing its own agenda and energy mix. He explained that there were two existential crises for Africans: global warming and energy poverty, which results in millions of people being poor.

“There is no question at all for us in this part of the world that both must go simultaneously so that people can have access to power. That is why gas must remain an important transition fuel. We must think in both terms,” he said.

In a session themed ‘Building the Energy for Tomorrow’, the Chief Operating Officer of Oando Energy Resources & Executive Director, Oando PLC, Dr Ainojie Alex Irune, stressed the need for Africa to act fast and act now.

He said argued that for the first time, energy growth and demand outstripped average economic growth across the world, in a time when the energy mix was still being contented.

“Against the backdrop of our youth population, poverty index and intra-African collaboration, we need to get impatient about delivering value and development to our people. The molecule of oil in our ground must be excavated with urgency; I’m talking about oil. We must create the balance sheet that will fund the transition,” he asserted.

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Source: Punch Newspapers 

https://punchng.com/africa-intensifies-energy-transition-efforts-amid-climate-change-concerns/