On the eve of the G20 summit on Sunday 17 November, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, announced the launch of the global campaign ‘Scaling up Renewables in Africa’.
This campaign, coordinated with the international citizens’ organisation Global Citizen, seeks to drive new commitments on policy and finance from governments, financial institutions, private sector and philanthropists, to boost renewable power generation and access in Africa between now and November 2025.
According to the Commission’s estimates, Africa has 60% of the world’s best solar resources, but the continent receives just 3% of global energy investment, while more than 600 million people, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, remain without access to electricity.
“Africa’s clean energy journey is picking up speed. We are proud to be part of it. Europe has been investing massively in renewable energy projects in Africa with ‘Global Gateway’. Now we are calling on the world to join us”, said Ms von der Leyen at the ‘Global Citizen NOW’ event.
The campaign launched on Sunday is based in particular on a €150 billion ‘EU-Africa’ investment package, implemented through joint initiatives bringing together the EU, its Member States, development finance institutions and the private sector under the name ‘Team Europe’ (see EUROPE 13495/14). (Original version in French by Bernard Denuit)