The upcoming Africa Energy Indaba is proud to announce its continued strategic partnership with the World Energy Council.
Dr Angela Wilkinson, Secretary General & CEO, World Energy Council stated: “Investment in energy transition for Africa is not all about finance or technology, it’s really about people – quality access for families, livelihoods, communities, dignity, and a healthy planet. It’s time to rethink investment in energy for humanity.”
This year, Dr Wilkinson will be participating at this premium sectoral event in Cape Town.
The Africa Energy Indaba is the World Energy Council’s regional event for Africa in cooperation with the South African National Energy Association (SANEA) and the NEPAD Planning & Coordinating Agency (NPCA). The World Energy Council will continue to host its Africa Regional Meeting within the broader event. The Indaba Energy Leaders’ Dialogue will also take place this year.
As the World Energy Council’s flagship event for Africa, this private, invitation-only forum brings together global and regional energy leaders for strategic dialogue on the pressing issues and latest developments facing the African energy industry. It offers a timely opportunity to reflect on the challenges of investing in Africa in the wider context of the global energy transition and the emerging social issues and impacts agenda, whilst also engaging with the Council’s new insights on innovation, integrated policy pathfinding and scenarios.
As global energy transition enters a new era of accelerating decarbonisation, closing the basic access gap in Africa – where more than half the population do not have access to electricity – is essential but not sufficient. The urgent need to meet the rapidly growing demand for clean, reliable, affordable energy requires investment in infrastructure and skills alongside modernisation of the sector from the ground up.
Read: Transforming The Global Energy Economy
As an increasing number of governments across Africa place sustainable energy transition at the centre of their human development and climate strategies, responsible investment is a key lever. Responsible investment in energy for Africa not only entails infrastructure or technology, but people and policy choices along with the quality or productive access needed by families, local communities and cities in healthy and happy energy societies to flourish through energy transition.
Better understanding is required of the societal issues and impacts of energy transition, new policy approaches, and greater alignment of global financial market imperatives. Such alignment creates enabling conditions and opportunities for responsible investment in quality energy access for all. In a continent of diverse societies, fast shifting needs and common goals, we need to collaborate and humanise the energy transition for happy and healthy societies.
According to the Council’s World Energy Issues Monitor 2020, Africa – where the majority of the population is under 16 years of age – faces a multitude of challenges from rapid population growth and urbanisation and energy poverty.
But it is also a continent endowed with untapped human capital and significant conventional and renewable energy resources that can be deployed to design more sustainable energy systems if barriers to trade and regional integration can be overcome. Energy leaders see decentralised systems, digitalisation and trade barriers as the three main Critical Uncertainties. Action Priorities revolve around Economic Growth, Energy Efficiency and Renewable priorities.
