African energy regulators met in Fez to discuss regional integration and sustainable energy transition. Emphasis is placed on strengthening infrastructure and harmonizing regulatory frameworks to attract investment and harness energy complementarities among nations, paving the way for Africa’s clean and prosperous energy future.
The energy transition is a global challenge that Africa is committed to urgently solving. With energy demand exploding at the rate of demographic and economic growth, the continent is in the process of fundamentally rethinking its strategies to ensure sustainable electricity supply while integrating the imperatives of sustainable development.
In this context, the city of Fez hosted, on May 2 and 3, a closed workshop that brought together the presidents of energy regulators from several African countries, including the Ivory Coast, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Senegal and Mauritania. Initiated by the Moroccan National Regulatory Authority for Electricity (ANRE), this meeting entitled “Regulation and Regional Energy Integration for a Sustainable and Prosperous Future” aimed to explore ways of strengthening regional energy integration, guaranteeing a sustainable and prosperous future for the population.
Regional integration, the key to a sustainable energy transition in Africa
Faced with the growing demand for energy on the continent, the participants highlighted the need to strengthen the regional infrastructure. Only such an approach will make it possible to sustainably integrate renewable and innovative solutions essential for ensuring a sustainable energy transition.
Speaking at this meeting, Abdellatif Bardach, President of ANRE, insisted on the opportunities offered by strengthened cooperation between African countries.
According to him, the joint efforts of national regulators would make it possible to make the best use of energy complementarities between nations. Bardach gave an example of the possible synergy of combining the renewable resources of Morocco and the DRC with the gas resources of Mauritania and Senegal, all to meet the growing needs of the ECOWAS countries. According to him, such an integrated approach would promote a low-carbon energy mix. On this occasion, the President of ANRE appealed to African countries to explore these promising avenues. He urged them to build a “robust cross-border electricity interconnection network” while harmonizing their regulatory frameworks.
“Together we will attract the necessary investments to finance our shared transition to a sustainable, prosperous and accessible future for all,” he insisted.
Africa’s energy transition: regulators must lead the way
Speaking at the gathering in Fez, Amidou Traoré, Director General of the National Regulatory Authority for the Electricity Sector of Côte d’Ivoire (ANARE-CI) recalled the vital importance of the energy issue, especially for the African continent.
“Energy is today a data that is very important for all continents, and especially for Africa,” underlined the Ivorian official.
According to him, the sector is currently undergoing major “transformations”, which implies a decisive role for regulators to “help public authorities make the best choice”. Traoré insisted on the need for informed energy planning and regulation, both in terms of financial models and technical or legal frameworks. Regulators, according to him, must position themselves “at the forefront” in order to “propose solutions” to political decision-makers.
Mehdi Idrissi / ECO Inspirations
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