The African Development Bank's Desert to Power (D2P) initiative aims to transform Africa's Sahel region into a solar energy powerhouse. The project will develop solar power infrastructure across 11 countries, with plans to connect 250 million people to the electrical grid.
Recent progress in the D2P program includes a significant $302.9 million loan co-financing package for a solar power plant project, which includes electrical interconnection infrastructure between Mauritania and Mali. This development is expected to provide power connections to 100,000 households.
Mission 300
The initiative is part of the larger Mission 300 (M300) collaboration between the African Development Bank and World Bank Group, which aims to address the continent's power distribution challenges.
Next week, African and global changemakers will converge in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, for the inaugural Africa Heads of State Energy Summit, where they will commit to an ambitious project to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030.
The initiative, dubbed ‘Mission 300’ (M300), represents an unprecedented collaboration between the African Development Bank and the World Bank Group, alongside other global partners. The project aims to bridge the continent’s vast power divide by leveraging cutting-edge technology and innovative financing.
Several heads of state and Government from Africa and the rest of the world will join 1,500 other participants – with strong representation from the private sector – at the 27-28 January summit. Together, they will chart Africa’s course toward universal access to affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy by 2030.
This initiative comes at a critical time: nearly 600 million Africans, representing a staggering 83% of the world’s energy-deprived population, lack access to electricity.
“No economy can grow, industrialise, or be competitive in the dark,” declared African Development Bank Group President Dr Akinwumi Adesina. “This partnership is a game changer for Africa’s development.”
Mission 300, launched at the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings 2024, also has the backing of the Group of Seven (G7) and the G20.
