The National Rural Electrification Programme (Proner) in Côte d’Ivoire hs received a boost from the African Development Bank (AfDB) which has recently granted Côte d’Ivoire a loan of over US$67M that will be used to finance rural electrification in the West African country.
This project dubbed Proner I is the first phase of the Proner project. The latter was launched early this year and it is a part of the The National Rural Electrification Programme (Proner) in Côte d’Ivoire which aims, among other things, to strengthen the country’s energy capacity and improve the living conditions of its population.
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Proser I
Mainly Proner I will see that 1,388 rural localities in the country’s 11 districts, including Comoé, Denguelé, Lakes, Lagoons, Mountains, Sassandra, Woroba, Savanes, Bandama Valley, Yamoussoukro and Zanzan are connected to the electricity grid.
Some of the work that will be done includes the construction of 6,460 km of 33 kV power lines, the construction of 3,419 km of low-voltage lines and the installation of 1,394 rural distribution substations. 11 transmission sub-stations will also be secured to ensure an uninterrupted supply of electricity to the country’s population. 797,000 inhabitants or its whereabouts will benefit from this project.
A part of the AfDB loan will also be set aside for the Electricity for All Programme (EFPT) of Côte d’Ivoire, which was launched mid last year in the Indénié-Djuablin region. The programme is expected to be completed before the end of this year and it will illuminate approximately 114,000 households.
Côte d’Ivoire’s current rural electrification
While electricity access in Côte d’Ivoire has reached 92% of the population in its urban areas, only 38% of its population in the rural areas are enjoying the benefits of electricity.
The government is however determined to change the current situation by employing the National Rural Electrification Programme (Proner) which aims to connect all the households in the country’s rural area to electricity in the coming five years.
