Mission 300, a collaboration between the World Bank Group (WBG), the African Development Bank (AfDB) and others, seeks to connect 300 million people in sub-Saharan Africa to electricity by 2030. While this ambition represents a historic opportunity to accelerate Africa’s energy access goals, especially for the roughly 630 million1 In a region without electricity, its current architecture lacks an explicit, institutionalised role for Civil Society Organisations (CSOS). This absence could fundamentally undermine the initiative’s legitimacy, sustainability, and alignment with people-centred development goals.
This document, developed as part of the Six30 Campaign,2 a civil-society-led push to ramp up investments in energy access across sub-Saharan Africa, outlines the rationale for robust CSO participation, identifies the risks of exclusion, demonstrates the potential of inclusive engagement, and proposes a structured framework to embed civil society into Mission 300’s governance and delivery mechanisms. Download full Paper
