Africa needs to boost domestic resources for energy

By Bahattin Gonultas

ISTANBUL

Countries in Africa need to mobilize domestic resources to empower the continent's access to reliable, clean and affordable energy, regional stakeholders told a high-level energy summit in Istanbul on Thursday.

Speaking at the 23rd World Energy Congress (WEC), of which Anadolu Agency is the global communication partner for 2016, stakeholders in the African continent agreed on the urgent need to diversify resources in the countries' economies.

The stakeholders acknowledged that this could be achieved through building infrastructure, deepening regional integration, having a stable regulatory environment and developing future talent in the continent.

Africa is still the least electrified continent with two out of three Africans lacking access to electricity, according to The World Energy Council.

“One out of the seven fastest growing countries is located in the African continent,” Bonang Mohale, chairman and vice-president of Shell Downstream South Africa told the "Empowering Africa: Realizing the potential" session at the congress.

"Africa is a black box. There is a lack of transparent information," said Andrew N. Kamau, principal secretary for petroleum in the government of Kenya.

He said Africa needed more youth and women to lead in energy business and the Kenyan government was investing in both.

Kamau also emphasized that the digital age needed to be entrenched in the country.

"I was a 'digital immigrant', we want every child in Kenya to become 'digital natives,'" he said.

- Private sector needs political support and stability.

"We have huge potential for energy resources such as solar and hydro-power," Commissioner for Energy and Infrastructure in the African Union, Elham Mahmood Ahmed Ibrahim said.

"The continent has a young population that needs employment, and demand for energy is growing very high," Ibrahim said.

She warned that countries in the continent should have business-friendly policies.

"We need to set priorities to use technology and financing, and it is also important to set priorities and maximize the use of available resources."

Ibrahim said the private sector was a critical player in developing the energy industry, but it needed political support and stability.

According to Ibrahim, "advancing regional integration through priority interconnection projects must be part of the way forward for the continent to realize its untapped potential."

"In Africa, resources are not distributed equally and demand for energy in some areas is very high," she explained.

"Africa needs a new investment mechanism in order to attract more investment and prepare its future leaders."

- Stable regulatory environment needed

Executive Chairman of Standard Bank Group of South Africa, Thulani Gcabashe, stressed the importance of having a stable regulatory environment in African countries even when there are regime or government changes.

"The main investment laws should be not changed from one government to another, because if the law changes very often, then investors will only be uncertain about their investments," Gcabashe said.

He complained that big projects lacked security, which in turn resulted in a failure to attract investments. He urged more regional integration across countries through interconnection projects for the development of the continent as a whole.

- Energy projects require better financing

Uganda's Energy Minister Simon D'Ujanga said that the country had invested in different projects in the energy sector to create clean energy and incentivized others to follow suit.

"We have to fill the gap in power transmission and distribution in Uganda.

"There is a need for regulations in financial projects, as the return on investment can take 20 years to realize in some projects," he said.

He added that a skillful workforce, which could be achieved through education of future leaders, was required along with the acceleration of infrastructure development and regional integration.