{US President Barack Obama has signed into law an initiative aimed at bringing electricity to 50 million people in sub-Saharan Africa by 2020.}<\/p>\n
The Electrify Africa Act of 2015 will give legal backing to Mr Obama’s flagship Power Africa scheme, which is trying to improve access to electricity through public-private partnerships.<\/p>\n
It took nearly two years to be passed in both houses of the US Congress.
\nAbout two-thirds of people in Africa do not have access to reliable power.<\/p>\n
Observers say the new legislation is likely to ensure that the scheme continues even after Mr Obama leaves the White House in 2017.<\/p>\n
The scheme has set itself the long-term target of doubling electricity access in sub-Saharan Africa.<\/p>\n
The legislation would “improve the lives of millions in sub-Saharan Africa by helping to reduce reliance on charcoal and other toxic fuel sources that produce fumes that kill more than HIV\/Aids and malaria combined,” said House Foreign Affairs committee chairman Ed Royce, a long-time supporter of the initiative.<\/p>\n
It would also “promote the development of affordable and reliable energy”, he added, in a statement on Monday.<\/p>\n
Management consultant firm McKinsey estimates that it will cost $835bn (\u00a3575bn) to connect the entire continent’s population to electricity by 2030.<\/p>\n
Aside from the US government, African governments, development partners, and the private sector are all involved in the Power Africa scheme.<\/p>\n
The US government has made financial commitments of $7bn to support the scheme, which it says in turn has drawn a further $43bn in investment pledged from other public and private partners.<\/p>\n
Source:BBC:[US President Obama signs Africa electricity plan into law->http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-35534612]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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