President Ruto Highlights Underfunding of Africa’s Renewable Energy Development

President Ruto also addressed the recent climate-related disasters, including floods in Kenya, attributing them to climate change and calling for collective efforts to mitigate its impacts.

President William Ruto has expressed concern over the inadequate funding of Africa’s renewable energy sector, despite global advancements in the field. Speaking at the High-Level Business Segment on Climate Change Response and Transition to Carbon-Free Energy in Seoul, South Korea, President Ruto emphasized that Africa's potential remains largely untapped.

While 2023 saw a significant global increase in renewable energy capacity with the addition of about 500 gigawatts and new investments worth $600 billion, Africa only contributed 3 gigawatts to this increase. President Ruto highlighted the disparity, noting that Africa, which has the highest untapped potential for renewable energy, currently accounts for a mere 1.6% of the world's total renewable energy capacity.

He stressed that Africa presents immense opportunities for investors from the Global North in the clean energy sector, offering mutually beneficial outcomes. "African leaders endorsed the Nairobi Declaration, setting a target to increase the continent’s green power generation from 56GW in 2022 to at least 300GW by 2030," he said.

President Ruto also addressed the recent climate-related disasters, including floods in Kenya, attributing them to climate change and calling for collective efforts to mitigate its impacts. He highlighted Kenya’s achievements in renewable energy, stating that 93% of the country’s power grid is green. He called on Korea and its investors to support Kenya's ambitious plan to expand its current grid from 3GW to 100GW by 2040, leveraging the country’s abundant renewable energy resources.

Further, President Ruto discussed the Africa Green Industrialisation Initiative launched at COP28, aimed at fostering clean energy manufacturing on the continent. He underscored the potential economic benefits of the global energy transition for Africa, emphasizing the need to mobilize $1 trillion from public and private finance by 2030.

“Africa’s vast renewable energy resources place the continent in a strategic position to capitalize on the global shift towards clean energy,” he concluded, urging international collaboration and investment to unlock Africa's renewable energy potential.