ICA's Areas of Focus
Enhancing coordination, increasing knowledge and sharing information are key aspects of the ICA Secretariat’s work.
In addition to engagement through the 2016 ICA Annual Meeting, the Secretariat’s activities in the energy sector during 2016 included:
A two-day forum in Senegal in March 2016, organised in collaboration with the Association of Power Utilities of Africa (APUA), that focussed on how best to engage the private sector in Africa’s power sector development and the role of Africa’s Regional Power Pools in fostering enhanced private sector involvement in regional power projects. The meeting was attended by over 45 senior officials representing the power pools, power utilities, the APUA and other stakeholders involved in the energy sector.
A gathering of energy experts in South Africa in April 2016 to take forward production of the Atlas of Africa’s Energy Resources. Facilitated by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the ICA Secretariat, the three-day meeting was attended by selected energy experts in Africa and the directors of the Environmental Pulse Institute, EPI. The meeting subjected the draft Atlas to a detailed and substantive technical peer review, focusing on validating information in the draft and the adequacy of coverage in terms of case studies and hotspots. The Atlas, due to be finalised and published in 2017, will combine illustrative maps, charts and comparative images which provide important information on energy resources across the continent.
A meeting of over 150 private and public sector players in Zambia in May 2016, organised by the ICA Secretariat in collaboration with the African Development Bank (AfDB), to discuss how best to accelerate financing for renewable energy development in Africa. Growing domestic African funding for renewable energy development, introducing cost-reflective tariffs, promoting local participation in manufacture, de-risking investments and the importance of early-stage funding were among the issues covered by the lively discussion, which coincided with the AfDB’s annual meeting.
During 2017 the ICA Secretariat’s work in the energy sector will include:
The launch of the Atlas of Africa’s Energy Resources at the World Economic Forum on Africa (3-5 May 2017). Produced by the Infrastructure Consortium for Africa (ICA) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) in cooperation with the United Nations Energy Programme (UNEP), the Atlas brings together data and information about the continent’s energy resources in a format that is easily understandable to policy makers, planners, investors and developers, while also being highly accessible to the general public. The Atlas details Africa’s energy resources, and also covers energy and cross-cutting issues (such as the environment and health), regional energy integration and markets, and energy and sustainable development. In addition, the Atlas contains energy profiles of 54 African countries.
A series of training workshops for Regional Power Pools, in collaboration with the African Legal Support Facility (ALSF), focussing on the legal and financial aspects of Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs). These follow-up the success of earlier workshops, conducted in 2014 and 2015 respectively for 10 Anglophone and 11 Francophone countries. The first workshop, for the Southern African Power Pool, took place from 30 January 2017 to 3 February 2017 in Johannesburg, South Africa. Three further workshops covering the Eastern, West and Central African Power Pools will take place later in 2017.
The publication of an update to the 2011 Regional Power Status in African Power Pools report, which provided an overview of the status of Africa’s five Regional Power Pools. The new report will include analysis of updated data, identifying findings, trends and possible solutions for the respective regions of the five Power Pools, and the potential to build effective power markets in the regions. There will also be a section on private sector participatio.
A partnership with the International Hydropower Association at the World Hydropower Congress, which will take place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 9 to 11 May 2017. The partnership will provide an opportunity for the ICA Secretariat to outline the work it undertakes to support and encourage investment in infrastructure development in Africa, and in particular to disseminate its knowledge products relating to renewable energy, financing trends, quality infrastructure and energy resources.