REPORTS

The World Economic Forum has published the Fostering Effective Energy Transition report. The report finds that while access to energy has substantially improved, with less than one billion people now living without access to electricity, concerns over affordability and equity of energy transition are increasing.

The report’s Energy Transition Index (ETI) measures economies in two ways. Firstly, each economy is assessed for its energy “system performance”. This takes into account three criteria regarded as critical for transitioning to the future, namely: security and access, environmental sustainability and economic growth and development. The latter measures economic impact to households, industry and export revenues.

The index benchmarks 115 countries on the current level of their energy system performance, and the readiness of their macro environment for transition to a secure, sustainable, affordable and inclusive future energy system. The fact-based framework and rankings are intended to enable policy makers and businesses to identify the destination for energy transition, identify imperatives, and align policy and market enablers accordingly.

Africa's performance in ETI

According to the report, Sub‑Saharan Africa has the lowest levels of per‑capita energy consumption, with about 600 million people lacking access to electricity and many more without access to clean cooking fuels.

"The analysis of ETI sub-components and their dimensions reveals the complexity of energy transition challenges in the region. The average scores on energy system performance have improved over the past five years, but all Sub‑Saharan countries score lower than the global average on energy system performance. The scores on the economic development and growth dimension are closer to the global average, largely driven by increasing exports of oil and gas."

Namibia is the highest‑ranking country in the region, with a combined aggregate score of 55/100. This is followed by Kenya (52/100), Tunisia (52/100), Ghana (52/100) and Tanzania (49/100). The region’s two largest energy consumers, Nigeria (41/100) and South Africa (37/100), rank in the bottom 10 percentile.

Download the report below: