March 15, 2022

According to an International Energy Agency (IEA), about 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa lack access to electricity.

The lack of access to reliable electricity is a key constraint to achieving broad-based economic development and impedes growth especially as it powers economies in the region: schools, offices, hospitals, etc.

Although major steps have been taken to improve electricity via renewable energy access and energy efficiency policies, significant effort is still required to enable that shift from policy to investment.

No doubt, households in Africa need access to stable and affordable electricity in their homes to light up their homes, cook, keep cool during periods of heat, etc. Coupled with that, businesses need electricity to drive their activities.

Unfortunately, the unstable nature of electricity on the continent as well as the price to access it has become a major problem. For a continent that houses most of the people below the poverty line, electricity access, even as there’s a shift to renewable sources, is quite expensive.

Below are 5 African countries where households pay the highest prices to access electricity.

The information is based on statistics from Statista, a global markets and consumer data company that is based in Hamburg, Germany.

The data is based on statistics for the first quarter of 2021 and is based on the hourly price rates for electricity across Africa.

Rwanda

According to Statista, this East African country has the most expensive household electricity price on the continent, with Rwandan households paying an average of $0.26 for every kilowatt-hour of electricity they get.

Cape Verde

Going by Statista’s data, this island country has the second most expensive household electricity price in Africa, with a one-kilowatt hour of electricity costing a household in Cape Verde $0.25.

Mali

Coming in third place, this West African country comes in next on the with a price of $0.23 for every one-kilowatt hour of electricity.

Burkina Faso

According to Statista, this land-locked Francophone Western African country has the fourth most expensive household electricity price in Africa, with one-kilowatt hour of electricity in the country costing $0.22.

Gabon

Gabon is the fifth-most expensive African country with the most expensive household electricity price according to Statista and like Burkina Faso, a kilowatt-hour of electricity would cost households $0.22.

You can see from the above prices that electricity access is quite expensive and that developing renewable energy sectors as well as technologies on the continent, apart from enabling access to safe, clean, efficient, and sustainable electricity, is also key to achieving access to affordable electricity.

Courtesy: Climateaction.africa