Renewables to light way for Africa ‘tired of being in the dark’ – AfDB
Bank to invest $12 billion in energy within five years
* Only 32 percent in sub-Saharan Africa have electricity
* Project will work with others to boost investment
* Plan to skip carbon-intensive growth for renewables
By Bate Felix
PARIS, Dec 1 Akinwumi Adesina, head of the African Development Bank (AfDB), has a bold vision for electrifying a continent where two-thirds of people lack access to power, and getting there by skipping carbon-intensive growth in favour of renewable energy.
At U.N. climate change talks in Paris on Tuesday, Adesina said the initiative would boost renewable energy output in Africa by nearly tenfold to 300 gigawatt (GW) by 2030.
“Africa is simply tired of being in the dark,” Adesina said to a cheering crowd at the African Pavilion at the summit in Paris for the launch of the African Renewable Energy Initiative. Read More…