Africa’s electricity supply problems result from poor governance and not lack of capital, the head of a continental union of producers and distributors said on Tuesday.
Supply problems have deteriorated despite vast natural resources enough to meet its needs and export surpluses, the head of the Union of Producers, Transporters and Distributors of Electric Power in Africa (UPDEA) said.
”Leadership and good governance have come short of expectations. Far too often, we have failed to look beyond our employment contracts,” said Eddie Njoroge, UPDEA’s president at the group’s 16th congress in Nairobi.
Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki told the gathering that only 10% of the population of a majority of African nations have access to electricity, and only 4% in rural areas.
He said that despite a population of 800-million, Africa accounts for only 3% of global electricity consumption.
South Africa is one of the countries facing serious supply challenges which have caused debilitating power outages.
In Kenya, East Africa’s biggest economy, demand for power and generation capacity are at par, also leading to load-shedding and supply cuts.
A World Bank survey released on Monday showed Kenya’s supply interruptions hurt its ability to attract and nurture investments. Power failures accounted for the highest component of indirect costs to firms at 8 percent, the bank said.
The International Energy Agency forecasts 584 million Africans — up from 526 million — will be without electricity by the year 2030.
Kibaki told the meeting the continent will require 260 000MW of power at a cost of $560-billion by that date.
”Let us not see the increasing power demand as a challenge, rather as opportunity to expand our business and power economic growth,” Njoroge, who is also the managing director of the Kenya Electricity Generating Company, said.
He asked African governments to stop appointing people who could be easily manipulated to the helm of state utilities, but to consider merit and performance.
”Unless and until we do so, Africa will literally remain the ‘dark continent’ as labelled by one of the colonialists,” he said. – Reuters