Nigeria, Tanzania, Ethiopia lead Africa electrification surge – Report

Tanzania, Nigeria, and Ethiopia have emerged as the biggest beneficiaries of a major World Bank-backed electrification drive across Africa, helping to connect more than 50 million people to electricity in less than three years, an analysis of the Mission 300 Progress Report obtained by our correspondent has shown.

The report, which tracks electricity connections delivered through World Bank Group-financed operations between July 1, 2023, and April 30, 2026, revealed that 40 African countries have benefited from 85 electricity access projects, bringing power to homes, businesses, schools, and health facilities across the continent.

However, the report also exposed persistent gaps in Africa’s electrification efforts, showing that eight countries are yet to record a single new electricity connection under the programme despite ongoing or approved projects.

The Mission 300 initiative, backed by the World Bank Group and other development partners, seeks to provide electricity access to 300 million Africans by 2030, tackling one of the continent’s most pressing development challenges.

“In Tanzania, for example, 7.5 million people have gained access to power under Mission 300, a five-fold increase in the average annual pace of electrification prior to the initiative, driven by increased financing and growing policy momentum.”

“In Ethiopia, 4.6 million people have been connected, supported by reforms that made grid connections more affordable. 50 million people connected is a milestone, but the bigger story is the pace and the partnership behind it.

“Mission 300 is helping countries move faster, connect more people, and build a platform that will last well beyond this effort, which others can use, build on, and scale for years to come. At the end of the day, electricity is not just about power. It is about what it enables: jobs, business, health care, education, and opportunity,” the President of the World Bank Group, Ajay Banga, was quoted as saying.

A review of the latest figures showed that Tanzania recorded the highest number of new electricity connections among participating countries, with 7.5 million people gaining access to power.

The East African nation achieved the feat through its Rural Electrification Expansion Programme, which connected five million people, and the Tanzania Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy Access Transformation Programme, which added another 2.5 million beneficiaries.

Ethiopia came second with approximately 4.67 million people connected to electricity through four major projects.

Its Ethiopia Electrification Programme accounted for 3.4 million connections, while the Electricity Network Reinforcement and Expansion Project added 1.1 million beneficiaries. The Access to Distributed Electricity and Lighting in Ethiopia project contributed 165,000 additional connections.

Nigeria, with a population of over 200 million people, ranked third on the continent with about 4.51 million new electricity connections.

The report showed that Nigeria’s Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up Project accounted for 3.6 million beneficiaries, while the Nigeria Electrification Project connected 619,000 people, and the Distribution Sector Recovery Programme added another 292,000.

Further analysis of the report showed that Côte d’Ivoire secured fourth position with about 2.9 million connections, driven by the country’s Electricity Transmission and Access Project and the National Electricity Digitalisation and Access Operation.

Tied closely behind were Uganda and Tanzania’s regional peers. Uganda connected 2.5 million people through its Electricity Access Scale-up Project, while Madagascar delivered about 2.65 million connections through its Least-Cost Electricity Access Development Project and Digital and Energy Connectivity for Inclusion Programme.

Rwanda also posted a strong performance, recording nearly 2.4 million connections across three energy access projects. Malawi followed with 1.9 million beneficiaries, while Mozambique connected approximately 2.67 million people through its Energy for All Programme and Sustainable Energy and Broadband Access in Rural Mozambique Project.

Kenya recorded about two million connections from three separate projects, while Chad crossed the one million mark through its Energy Access Scale-Up Project.

According to the report, the leading countries by total number of people connected include: Tanzania – 7.5 million, Ethiopia – 4.67 million, Nigeria – 4.51 million, Côte d’Ivoire – 2.9 million, Mozambique – 2.67 million, Madagascar – 2.65 million, Uganda – 2.5 million, Rwanda – 2.38 million, Kenya – 2.0 million and Malawi – 1.9 million.

The report noted that these countries accounted for a substantial share of all new electricity connections recorded under World Bank-supported operations across Africa. Improved electricity access remains critical to economic growth, industrialisation, healthcare delivery, education, and job creation.

According to the World Bank, nearly 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity, making the continent home to the largest electricity deficit globally.

Nigeria’s showing places the country among Africa’s top performers despite longstanding challenges in the power sector.

The report indicated that off-grid and renewable energy projects contributed significantly to Nigeria’s progress, particularly through the Distributed Access through Renewable Energy Scale-up Project, which alone accounted for nearly 80 per cent of the country’s new connections.

The country’s total of about 4.5 million beneficiaries means Nigeria accounted for almost one in every 11 new electricity connections delivered under the programme across Africa.

While several countries recorded significant gains, eight nations are yet to register any electricity connection under the Mission 300-tracked World Bank operations. The report listed these countries as Angola, Cabo Verde, the Republic of Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, Senegal, South Sudan, and Sudan.

In these countries, approved projects have either not commenced implementation, remain at preparatory stages, or have yet to record measurable electricity access outcomes. For instance, Angola’s Electricity Sector Improvement and Access Project and the Angola Secondary Cities Support Programme recorded zero connections during the review period.

Similarly, Senegal’s Energy Access Scale-Up Project, Guinea-Bissau’s Solar Energy Scale-Up and Access Project, and South Sudan’s Energy Sector Access and Institutional Strengthening Project had not produced any recorded beneficiaries as of April 2026.

Other countries with projects yet to register new connections include Cabo Verde, Mauritania, Sudan, and the Republic of Congo. Beyond country-specific interventions, regional projects also delivered significant results.

In West and Central Africa, International Finance Corporation and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency-backed projects connected about 6.4 million people.

The Regional Off-Grid Electricity Access Project added 227,000 beneficiaries, while the ECOWAS Regional Electricity Access Project connected another 255,000 people.

In Eastern and Southern Africa, the Regional Infrastructure Finance Facility delivered 2.6 million connections, while the Regional Energy Access Financing Platform added one million beneficiaries.

Mission 300 is a joint initiative of the World Bank Group and development partners aimed at connecting 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030. The programme combines grid expansion, mini-grid deployment, and off-grid renewable energy solutions to tackle Africa’s electricity deficit.

According to the latest progress report, more than 50 million people have already gained access to electricity through 85 projects implemented across 40 African countries between July 2023 and April 2026.

The report highlights both the scale of progress being made and the significant challenges that remain as governments and development institutions race to close Africa’s electricity access gap and support economic transformation across the continent.