The U.S. Department of Energy Tuesday announced a new framework for investment — “Beyond the Grid” — a partnership with 27 “investors and practitioners” who commit to direct $1 billion towards off-grid and small scale energy projects in sub-Saharan Africa, in support of President Barack Obama’s Power Africa initiative.
The announcement could help assuage some environmentalists’ and pro-poor advocates’ fears that Power Africa investments lean too heavily on conventional and grid-connected energy projects and threaten to increase carbon emissions while neglecting rural communities that are often the most impoverished and underserved.
U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz announced the new framework Tuesday at the U.S.-Africa Energy Ministerial co-hosted by the governments of Ethiopia and the United States in Addis Ababa. U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator Rajiv Shah, African Development Bank Director Alex Rugamba, U.S. National Security Council Senior Director Gayle Smith and other notable public figures are participating in sessions that span topics related to access to energy for women, governance and natural gas utilization, among others.
About the author
Michael Igoe@AlterIgoe
Michael Igoe is a Senior Reporter with Devex, based in Washington, D.C. He covers U.S. foreign aid, global health, climate change, and development finance. Prior to joining Devex, Michael researched water management and climate change adaptation in post-Soviet Central Asia, where he also wrote for EurasiaNet. Michael earned his bachelor's degree from Bowdoin College, where he majored in Russian, and his master’s degree from the University of Montana, where he studied international conservation and development.
