‘Renewable energy presents an opportunity to Africa to limit the issues of climate change’

With more than half a billion Africans still living without power, the continent’s energy future hangs in the balance. The Accelerated Partnership for Renewables in Africa (APRA) aims to bridge this divide by uniting governments, investors and international partners to fast-track renewables while ensuring energy security and economic growth.

Down To Earth speaks with Gloria Magombo, Zimbabwe’s Deputy Minister of Energy and Power Development, member of the UN Panel on Critical Energy Transition Minerals, and Zimbabwe’s representative on the IRENA Council, during the APRA forum. APRA was held in Freetown, Sierra Leone, from October 22-23, 2025, organised by IRENA and the Government of Sierra Leone.

Mekonnen Teshome: Why is it important for APRA member countries in Africa to come together and hold debates and discussions on renewable energy?

Gloria Magombo: Africa remains the continent with the world’s biggest energy deficit, particularly in rural areas that remain unserved. With over 600 million people lacking access to electricity, energy access must be prioritised as it is fundamental to economic development. Reliable energy is one of the key enablers of industrial growth, social services, and quality of life.

For APRA members, the focus is on accelerating access—especially for rural and peri-urban communities that still rely on traditional fuels or remain off-grid. Bringing African countries together under the APRA umbrella allows us to discuss shared challenges, exchange experiences, and coordinate approaches to closing the continent’s massive energy gap.

MT: What is the APRA, and what motivated its establishment?

GM: The APRA, coordinated by IRENA, was launched through a collaboration between several African countries and partners including Denmark, the UAE, Germany, Japan and the United States. The question guiding the initiative was simple: How can we help African countries speed up the adoption of renewable energy to close the access gap?

Under APRA, African governments identify their infrastructure needs while partners help design strategies for accelerating renewables. This involves creating enabling environments for private investment, strengthening institutions, and de-risking energy projects. Many African countries already have supportive policies and regulations in place, but struggle to attract sufficient finance.

Our discussions have therefore focused on practical solutions like how to build investor confidence, how to strengthen local institutions, and how to use both external and domestic investment effectively. Capacity building is central, ensuring our institutions can provide the predictability that investors seek.

APRA is also a platform for peer learning. Member countries share experiences from successful projects, understand what worked and what didn’t, and adapt those lessons to their own contexts. While every country’s energy landscape is unique, investors everywhere want the same thing: A stable, peaceful, and predictable investment environment with fair returns.

MT: Zimbabwe continues to rely on coal and fossil fuels. What are the prospects and challenges in transitioning towards renewables?

GM: Accelerating renewables in our energy mix does not mean abandoning other resources. For us, energy security remains paramount. Renewables still face technical limitations—solar power, for instance, is only available during the day, while most of our energy demand peaks at night. This calls for battery storage or alternative baseload sources.

We therefore need a balanced energy mix that provides reliable power around the clock. Zimbabwe’s approach is to move towards net zero rather than zero fossil fuels. We aim to manage emissions responsibly through sustainable land use and agricultural practices that act as carbon sinks.

As an agro-based economy, our crops, wheat, maize, and others, absorb carbon dioxide. This allows us to offset some emissions from fossil fuel use. In the long term, as technology improves, we will adopt cleaner and more consistent renewable systems.

Hydropower, which many countries rely on as a clean baseload source, is becoming less dependable due to recurrent droughts. Therefore, each nation must craft its own energy mix based on available resources and climatic realities.

MT: What is the link between renewable energy and climate change mitigation?

GM: Renewable energy offers Africa a vital opportunity to grow without repeating the high-carbon path taken by industrialised nations. While Africa contributes little to global emissions, it bears some of the worst impacts of climate change, droughts, floods, food insecurity, and degraded ecosystems.

By integrating renewables into our energy systems, we can limit emissions and reduce the pressure on the atmosphere. However, addressing climate change cannot be Africa’s burden alone. Developed nations, which have historically contributed most to emissions, must also support us with finance, technology, and capacity building.

In Zimbabwe, as in many African countries, all infrastructure projects, whether roads, power plants, or industries, are now subject to environmental impact assessments. This ensures development does not destroy ecosystems.

The link between energy, environment and climate mitigation is clear: we must develop sustainably. Even if we continue using coal for now, we will offset emissions by planting more trees and expanding our agricultural productivity. Every country must contribute to reducing the global carbon footprint, but it must be done equitably. Africa cannot be asked to stop developing using its natural resources while others continue to benefit from theirs. 

MT: What challenges do African countries face in harmonising renewable energy policies across the continent? 

GM: Policy harmonisation is a crucial but complex task. Beyond aligning energy policies, we also need to standardise technical specifications for power generation and transmission. This is essential as the African Union envisions a single continental electricity market.

For example, if we are interconnected, excess hydropower from Ethiopia could be transmitted to southern Africa, where shortages persist. Similarly, southern countries with solar capacity could supply power northwards. Such interconnections require harmonised regulations, technical standards, and stable regional power markets.

Regional integration also helps de-risk large-scale projects. Some of our economies are small; Zimbabwe has a population of 16 million, but the Southern African Development Community (SADC) represents 320 million people, and Africa as a whole, over a billion. A shared market makes large investments viable and attractive.

The Southern African Power Pool (SAPP), established over 30 years ago, is an example of how regional power trading can work. Expanding and strengthening these networks across Africa will unlock vast opportunities for trade, investment, and shared growth.

Harmonisation also means learning from others. The European Union, for instance, has successfully standardised energy regulations and established cross-border electricity markets. Africa can follow a similar path, trading more within the continent before looking outward. 

MT: Finally, what role does finance play, and how can Africa reduce dependence on external funding?

GM: Access to finance remains one of the biggest bottlenecks for Africa’s energy transition. There is a widespread belief that funding for African renewable projects must come from the global north. But Africa itself holds vast natural and financial resources, including critical minerals and renewable energy potential, which can be leveraged to attract and generate local investment.

We must move up the value chain—producing, refining, and manufacturing within the continent rather than merely exporting raw materials. The future lies in African countries creating value locally: building solar panels, assembling wind turbines, and developing regional supply chains for green technologies.

By doing so, Africa can create jobs, strengthen economies, and reduce dependency on external financing. The goal is not to isolate ourselves, but to build partnerships based on equality—where both sides invest and benefit.

The transition to renewables will be neither simple nor uniform across Africa. But with strong institutions, harmonised policies, and a collective commitment through initiatives like APRA, the continent can achieve both energy security and climate resilience.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.