Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, the COP28 President-Designate, has unveiled a significant initiative from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that pledges $4.5 billion to facilitate the harnessing of Africa’s clean energy potential. This announcement took place during a keynote address at the inaugural African Climate Summit in Nairobi, Kenya.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The initiative represents a groundbreaking collaboration involving crucial public, private, and development funds from UAE institutions, notably the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, Etihad Credit Insurance, Masdar, and AMEA Power. Additionally, Africa50, an investment platform established by African governments and the Africa Development Bank, has joined forces with the UAE finance initiative.
Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, an advocate for tripling global renewable energy by 2030 and improving financial accessibility, emphasized the importance of African leaders enhancing policy and regulatory frameworks to attract long-term investments for clean and renewable energy projects.
He stated, “To reduce barriers to investment, the President-Designate highlighted multiple action points that require the coordinated efforts of African leaders and the international community.” He further emphasized that this initiative builds upon the UAE’s history of innovative blended finance solutions designed to promote clean energy adoption in emerging and developing nations.
This multi-stakeholder partnership approach aims to expedite sustainable economic development, address climate change challenges, and foster low-carbon growth. The initiative will prioritize investments in African countries with well-defined transition strategies, strengthened regulatory frameworks, and comprehensive plans for developing grid infrastructure that integrates supply and demand.
Sub-Saharan Africa currently has 600 million people without access to electricity, and expanding clean energy access can drive social and economic progress. However, investment in African renewables represents only 2 percent of the global total, falling far short of the $60 billion annual requirement by 2030.
The initiative seeks to rectify this imbalance by uniting key stakeholders to accelerate the development and delivery of infrastructure, generation, and distribution solutions, ultimately closing the gap in universal clean energy access. It will operate under the umbrella of Etihad 7, a development platform launched by the UAE to provide 100 million people in Africa with clean electricity by 2035. The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development and Etihad Credit Insurance are kick-starting the initiative with initial investments aimed at catalyzing private sector involvement. The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development has received $1 billion in financial support to address infrastructure needs and provide innovative finance solutions, while Etihad Credit Insurance is contributing $500 million in credit insurance to de-risk and mobilize private capital, underscoring its commitment to global sustainable development.
