Abuja, Nigeria, 15th July 2021; Sheraton Abuja Hotel
With over 800 million people in Sub Saharan Africa still lacking access to energy, and the pace of bridging this
gap needs to be accelerated. Many existing solutions have provided selective and limited support, while the
innovative mechanisms are also unfriendly towards small-scale projects. Weak governance, limited
organizational capacity and unfavorable policy environments have collectively undermined large-scale
mobilization of financial resources and constructive engagement of the private sector. A coordinated effort of
relevant stakeholders is needed to mobilize the private sector as well as finance (appropriate delivery and use)
for effective renewable energy transition1. According to “The Energizing Finance: Understanding the Landscape
(2020),2 finance for energy access remains far below the investment needed to achieve Sustainable
Development Goal 7 (SDG7) by 2030. Further, the available energy investments are not flowing to the right
energy solutions, the overall energy access investment portfolio continues to be dominated by a few large
projects and a handful of capital providers; and private sector investments remain elusive particularly in remote
underserved off-grid areas. Download Full Paper
