- AfDB plans to commit $164m for renewable energy development in six African countries.
- The finance is under the Leveraging Energy Access Finance Framework (LEAF) programme.
The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) is committing $164 million to accelerate renewable energy development in six African countries under the Leveraging Access Finance Framework (LEAF) programme.
The AfDB said the programme would help spur commercial and local currency investments to scale up the activities of decentralised renewable energy companies in the six African countries. Benefiting countries include Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tunisia. According to the AfDB, “under LEAF, some 18 decentralised renewable energy projects are expected to be financed, providing access to six million people and businesses, resulting in 28.8 million tonnes CO2 eq. in greenhouse gas emission reductions over the lifetime of the systems.” However, many African countries still face challenges in achieving universal access to sustainable, clean, affordable and reliable electricity.
The AfDB developed the LEAF programme in collaboration with the Green Climate Fund, which approved $170.9 million in concessional financing in July 2021. The framework forms part of the Bank’s broader off-grid strategy under the New Deal on Energy for Africa. It further complements existing initiatives, such as the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa.
The Bank’s Vice President in charge of Power, Energy, Climate Change and Green Growth, Dr Kevin Kariuki, remarked, “The African Development Bank is delighted to partner with the Green Climate Fund on the Leveraging Energy Access Finance Framework, which will not only accelerate access to electricity based on decentralised renewable energy solutions, hence reducing the respective countries’ carbon footprints, but will do so with the active participation of a private sector facilitated by local currency financing and commercial capital availed under the programme.”
The AfDB pointed out that over six years, LEAF will deploy concessional finance, credit enhancement instruments and technical assistance to crowd-in private sector investors, including local banks, to finance and accelerate efforts to power the continent.