President Paul Kagame and Uhuru Kenyatta have emphasized the need for more investments for Africa to meet energy needs and spur development.
President Kagame, President Uhuru Kenyatta and President of African Development Bank (AfDB), Adesina Akinwumi are among dignitaries who have attended the 51st Annual meeting of AfDB in Lusaka Zambia where they held a televised panel discussion under the sub-theme “Path to universal access to energy in Africa”.
It is embedded in AfDB’s new investment plan of enabling access to energy all over Africa by 2025.
President Kagame said that Africa is tired of poverty and poor access to electricity yet these can be tackled through investing in power generation, industrialization and creating jobs for the youth.
“We are tired of poverty and a bad environment. One way of dealing with these two issues is to invest in industrialization. As leaders, we are committed to finding ways of accelerating the progress already being made. There is new momentum; we are beginning to move with a sense of urgency as a continent. Let’s continue to fix our problems and also allow our citizens to have electricity,” he said.
President Kagame stressed the importance of availing electricity to Africans and noted that efforts are being increased in some activities which would have been done over the past years.
President Kenyatta said that Africa has to solve electricity problems by all means.
“We have to address matters of electricity shortage. Let’s concentrate on developing our infrastructures in power distribution. We must convert words into reality and bring tangible solutions,” he said.
Kenyatta added that African leaders should share electricity.
“We must consider electricity like other goods to be traded among us. We must invest in connecting electricity transmission so that holders of adequate electricity can share with those in need,” he said.
The two heads of states highlighted the need of collaborating with private investors to invest in energy projects and government reforms in power distribution to attract new partners.
The AfDB president Dr Adesina said that president Kagame and Kenyatta articulate better the needs of Africa priorities, leading with exercising the political will which can transform Africa needs into opportunities and meet people’s interests.
“The presence of money is essential but political will is needed to make things possible,” he said.
AfDB committed to invest USD 12 billion in energy in five years ahead so that all Africans will have access to electricity by 2025.
Today, 16% of Africans are reported have access to electricity.A total of 650 million Africans are yet to be connected.
The Lusaka meet has been attended by heads of state and governments including President Edgar Lungu of Zambia, Idris Deby of Tchad, the vice president of Nigeria, Yemi Osibajo, the Tanzanian premier, Kassim Majaliwa and Carlos Agostinho do Rosario, premier of Mozambique.
It was also attended by musician-cum investor Akon, former UN General Secretary Kofi Annan a Nigerian billionaire , Aliko Dangote and businessman Ashish Thakkar among others.
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