ISA unveils Solarising Africa strategy, Africa50 DRE Fund

Judith Phiri [email protected]

THE International Solar Alliance (ISA) has launched the Solarising Africa Strategy, Africa50 DRE Fund and major agriculture, financing and capacity-building initiatives as efforts to advance Africa’s critical role in the global energy transition agenda are ongoing.

These development were launched at the ongoing Eighth Meeting of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) Regional Committee for the Africa Region taking place in Victoria Falls and was officially opened by President Mnangagwa virtually.

Running from August 25 to 27, the event brought together ministers, senior government officials, Member, Signatory, and Prospective Countries from the Region, development partners and industry stakeholders to advance cooperation on solar deployment across Africa.

The meeting is focused on translating Africa’s solar resources into projects, investment and implementation, with the objective of strengthening energy access while supporting the continent’s broader industrialisation, economic development and climate resilience agenda.

In a statement highlighting the launched initiatives, ISA said: “During the Regional Committee Meeting, ISA released its Solarising Africa strategy report, an implementation blueprint identifying four priority areas, distributed renewable energy, solarised agriculture, e-mobility and utility-scale solar to accelerate deployment.”

The report outlines a pathway to scale solar capacity from 20 to 22 gigawatts today to 150 to 200 gigawatts by 2030, 500 gigawatts by 2040 and 1 terawatt by 2050, supported by finance, stronger institutions, skills and grids.

The operationalisation of Africa50 DRE Fund, sponsored by ISA, was confirmed, with the fund a financing platform designed to mobilise concessional, institutional and private capital for distributed renewable energy projects across Africa.

ISA said: “The facility will focus on building bankable project pipelines and supporting private-sector-led deployment for rural communities, farmers, MSMEs and other productive users of energy.”

While it also launched its Community of Practice on Solarisation of Agriculture in Africa, providing a platform for countries to exchange knowledge on solar irrigation and Agri-PV.

ISA said the Zimbabwe Declaration was attested by Uganda, Zimbabwe, The Gambia, Ghana, Senegal, Rwanda reaffirming a shared commitment to advancing solar water pumps and Agri-PV solutions.

“ISA also launched the Rwanda Agrivoltaics Rapid Outlook, a national assessment of Rwanda’s Agri-PV opportunity. The Outlook provides a country-specific evidence base to support informed dialogue on how solar energy and agriculture can work together, while responding to Rwanda’s own priorities and context,” read part of the statement.

ISA said Solar Water Pump e-Learning Programme was launched to make practical knowledge about solar pumping easily accessible to farmers.

While it also signed an extension of its memorandum of understanding (MoU) with GOGLA (global association for the off-grid solar energy industry) continuing their cooperation on decentralised solar solutions and expanding access to affordable and reliable energy across ISA Member Countries.

On Thursday, part of the statement said: “The First Lady of Zimbabwe, H.E. Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa, will grace the meeting proceedings on the second day and launch ISA’s Solar Universal Gender Assessment Tool (SOUGAT), under its Solar for She initiative, which will help ISA Member Countries integrate gender considerations into national solar policies by assessing political will, participation, capacity, implementation and impact.”

ISA said she will also dedicate a Solar Technology Application Resource Centre (STAR-C) at Chinhoyi University of Technology to the people of Zimbabwe, while the centre will support training and technical capacity building for the country’s solar sector.

The Regional Committees of the ISA meet annually, chaired by two Vice Presidents from the region, and aim to assess and discuss progress, challenges, and opportunities related to ISA’s programmatic support, flagship initiatives, partnerships, private sector engagements, and work plan for the region.

A key objective of the Regional Committee Meetings is to strengthen coordination and collaboration among Member Countries in the region. The Africa Region currently comprises 47 Member and Signatory Countries.