Electrifying Rural Africa: The Role of Decentralized Power Generation
As energy poverty continues to hinder development across sub-Saharan Africa, NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber, highlights the critical role of decentralized power generation in addressing energy access for rural communities.
In his latest piece, Ayuk emphasizes that solar home systems and mini-grids are vital solutions to eradicate energy poverty and improve the quality of life for nearly 600 million Africans lacking reliable electricity.
With over 75% of the world’s population without access to electricity living in Africa, energy poverty is a key barrier to progress. Rural areas, in particular, face intensified challenges, with many relying on dangerous and inefficient energy sources like kerosene lamps and firewood for lighting and cooking.
These fuels pose serious health risks and hinder economic growth by limiting access to essential services such as healthcare and education.
The African Energy Chamber’s recent 2025 Outlook report identifies three major challenges in achieving universal electricity access: expanding electricity infrastructure, ensuring affordability, and reducing reliance on harmful fossil fuels.
While traditional grid expansion has been the primary method for providing power to urban centers, decentralized power solutions, such as solar home systems and mini-grids, are proving to be far more effective for rural areas.
“Decentralized power generation is the best bet to eradicate energy poverty among people in isolated rural areas,” says Ayuk. “By decentralizing power, we can secure a sustainable energy future and improve lives across the continent.”
Africa’s vast solar and wind resources make it an ideal candidate for renewable energy solutions. Solar accounts for nearly 80% of the continent’s decentralized renewable capacity, with solar home systems and mini-grids providing power to millions.
Since 2012, installations of solar home systems have increased 12-fold, while mini-grids have expanded 45 times. By 2022, solar technologies had brought electricity to 77 million people through home systems and 3 million via mini-grids.
Despite the high initial costs of solar installations, innovative pay-as-you-go (PAYG) models have made decentralized power affordable for rural populations. Through PAYG programs, people can pay for solar energy in small, manageable installments. Public funding, private sector collaboration, and development bank initiatives are essential to scaling these solutions.
Notably, the African Development Bank’s Desert-to-Power initiative aims to install 10 GW of solar power across 11 countries by 2030, potentially bringing electricity to 250 million people.v
