The report presents the results of the second edition of the Electricity Regulatory Index (ERI) for Africa, covering thirty-four countries. The first edition was published in 2018, covering fifteen countries. The ERI measures the level of development of the regulatory framework for the electricity sector in African countries – rather than the level of development of the electricity sector itself. It is prepared for two main objectives:
to diagnose and identify key gaps in electricity sector regulations; and
to help regulators benchmark their own performance and progress against African peers and international best practices.
The ERI is made up of three pillars, or sub-indices.
The Regulatory Governance Index assesses how well the regulatory framework supports electricity sector reform, promotes efficiency and meets desired economic, financial, environmental and social objectives. It is concerned with the existence and content of electricity regulations.
The Regulatory Substance Index, assesses how well the regulatory framework is implemented in practice.
The Regulatory Outcome Index assesses the outcomes of regulatory processes from the point of view of regulated entities and power consumers, providing insights into how the actions of regulators have affected the performance of the sector.
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Written by Ethiopian Energy & Power Business Portal
The power grids of East and Southern African countries will be interconnected in the next two to three years after completion of various high voltage lines, paving the way for regional trade, a senior Kenyan energy official said on Tuesday. Power shortages and outages are common across both regions and businesses often complain that poor or erratic supplies discourage investors and push up prices of local products, as many firms end up relying on costly diesel generators.
Connecting national grids would provide a bigger pool of energy resources and mean one country can tap idle supplies in another. Joseph Njoroge, the principal secretary in the energy ministry, said high voltage lines linking Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda to Kenya were expected to be ready in at most the next three years. “In the next two to three years, we will have interconnections with several neighbouring countries in the region,” he told an East African power conference. “Thereafter, we will be able to come up with a configuration that enhances demand in terms of the region.”
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Written by Ethiopian Energy & Power Business Portal
The coronavirus crisis is putting a tremendous strain on the global economy and public health systems, as well as on the energy supply and access systems that support them. It highlights and magnifies inequalities and the multiple forms of discrimination that women and girls face, including in the energy sector. The pandemic is moving beyond a global health crisis, into a labor-market, social and economic crisis, posing a serious threat to women’s employment and livelihoods. This is especially so in the small business and informal sectors, that already have energy access challenges. Energy access is as important as ever for households and businesses; particularly health infrastructure and women’s role in the care economy are stressed. Furthermore, combined with COVID-19, traditional cooking smoke may pose an additional risk for women
Women are at the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. And they need modern and affordable energy to keep up this fight.
E NERGIA and partners have gathered and analyzed information from the field and from available sources, on the impacts of COVID-19 on women and energy access. Based on the findings, we identified a number of critical areas that need global and national support in the international fight against the pandemic. Below a summary of the recommendations for policy and practice. The full document, Gender and energy at center stage at in COVID-19 battle: Powering a more gender-equal recovery, is available here.
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Written by Ethiopian Energy & Power Business Portal, eepBp
Social impact measuermenet is often a balancing act. On the one hand, we want rich, meaningful insights that reflect reality on the ground. On the other, if we get too granular and specific, we can get lost in the details and be unable to compare results or reach broader conclusions.
At 60 Decibels, the technology-enabled social impact company spun out of Acumen, we’ve been walking this tightrope for more than five years. We’ve been resolutely focused on listening better to end customers and beneficiaries, while also keeping an eye on, and helping shape, the broader global trends in impact measurement. Our ultimate goal is to bring the two together: to show how to systematically integrate customer voice into comparative measures of social impact.
This week, with the publication of our first impact performance report, we have our best example yet of how to strike this delicate balance. This report, titled “Why Off Grid Energy Matters,” is a deep dive into the impact of off-grid energy. To create the report—sponsored by CDC Group, Acumen, Efficiency for Access Coalition and Shell New Energies—we spent three years completing more than 35,000 interviews with customers of 49 off-grid energy companies in 17 countries.
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Written by Ethiopian Energy & Power Business Portal
