DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania (BG) – At the Mission 300 Africa Energy Summit in Dar es Salaam, African leaders, alongside private sector and development partners, are taking decisive action to address one of the continent’s biggest challenges: providing electricity to 300 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030 through African-led, collaborative solutions.
Taking place on Jan. 27-28, 2025, and hosted by the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), World Bank Group, African Union, and the Tanzanian Government, the summit aims to craft solutions tailored to Africa’s specific energy needs while accelerating access to reliable and affordable electricity.
Speaking at a panel discussion on the summit’s first day, Akinwumi A. Adesina, President of the AfDB, highlighted the economic toll of energy poverty across the continent.
“This is a continent that actually loses three to four per cent of its GDP every year because of lack of electricity,” Adesina said.
He stressed the need for collaborative action, emphasizing that the initiative must deliver tangible results. “We can’t do Mickey Mouse business. We can’t have a situation where Africa doesn’t have enough electricity.”
African Leadership at the Forefront
The summit’s focus on African-led solutions was reiterated by Dr Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation, during the panel.
“In order to have any chance of being successful, this effort has to be African-led at absolutely every level,” he said.
“The world should ask itself, does this summit in Tanzania matter? Will it deliver something that has a chance to be wildly successful? And I am extremely confident that the answer to that question is yes,” Shah said.
Shah also noted the critical role of public investment, emphasizing, “No country on the planet has achieved universal electrification without significant public investment, not one.”
Nearly 30 African heads of state are expected to attend the summit and sign a declaration to promote electrification efforts across the continent.
Building Transparency and Trust
Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank, highlighted the need for clear and predictable regulatory policies to drive private sector investments.
“The moment you create unpredictability in that regulatory policy framework, you lead people with the decision that says, I’ll take my money and go play elsewhere,” Banga said.
He also pointed to innovative strategies, such as geospatial mapping, to determine the best ways to connect households to power through national grids or distributed energy systems.
This approach, combined with financial collaboration among governments, development banks, and private investors, is expected to drive sustainable energy solutions.
Commitments to Tangible Outcomes
The panelists also emphasized the development of regional power markets, with Tanzania leading by example through its participation in four power pools.
“This is not a talking summit,” Adesina stressed. “It’s not about what we say. We can do megawatts of talk all we want. It’s going to be the megawatts of power that we deliver that actually matters.”
A Unified Vision for Africa’s Energy Future
Mission 300 represents a historic moment in addressing Africa’s energy challenges.
By placing African leadership at the center, the summit aims to deliver reforms, foster economic growth, and create jobs while ensuring electrification solutions are tailored to the continent’s unique circumstances.
As Shah said: “We owe it to each of us in this room to ensure that this project succeeds.”
With its focus on collaboration, accountability, and actionable commitments, Mission 300 is charting a new course for Africa’s energy future.
