Scaling Up Access to Electricity : The Case of Lighting Africa
This knowledge note is the first of three case studies that concerns scaling up access to electricity in Africa, Bangladesh, and Rwanda. Lighting Africa, a joint IFC and World Bank program launched in 2007, was the first private-sector-oriented eff...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Brief |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2014
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2014/06/19670619/scaling-up-access-electricity-case-lighting-africa http://hdl.handle.net/10986/18681 |
| Summary: | This knowledge note is the first of
three case studies that concerns scaling up access to
electricity in Africa, Bangladesh, and Rwanda. Lighting
Africa, a joint IFC and World Bank program launched in 2007,
was the first private-sector-oriented effort to leverage new
LED lighting technologies to build sustainable markets that
provide safe, affordable, and modern off-grid lighting to
communities in Africa that lack access to electricity. By
2030 the program aims to enable the private sector to reach
250 million people who now depend on fuel-based lighting.
The case study for Africa is important, because the
continent faces a huge rural electricity deficit. Global
electrification in 2010 was estimated to be about 83
percent. The deficit of 17 percent encompasses some 1.2
billion people. Achieving universal access to modern energy
services is one of the three complementary objectives of the
Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) initiative. Lighting
Africa succeeded as a catalyst for the off-grid lighting
market in Sub-Saharan Africa. Another success is apparent in
the spectacular trajectory of solar lantern sales in Kenya.
On the climate front, the program has avoided 274,000 tons
of greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of taking 35,000
cars off the road. Important lessons were learned during the
first phase of the program. Some interventions were very
successful; others could have been done differently. Going
forward, the Lighting Africa program will support the
geographic expansion of ongoing activities to enable
market-based solutions for affordable, modern off-grid
lighting. The following challenges will be addressed: solar
home systems, consumer awareness, and impact evaluation. |
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