Renewable energy projects in Africa will be soaring high across the continent as the World Bank is planning to raise US$16B for hydro, geothermal and solar energy projects.
Practice Manager for Energy and Extractives at the World Bank, Mr. Charles Cormier, and spoke at a side event hosted at the African Pavilion at the COP 22, that the decision is part of the Africa Climate Business Plan initially presented at the COP 21.
The plan will offer investments to enhance clean energy and help 5 million off-grid consumers to get energy services by the year 2023, he said.
The Africa Climate Business Plan, also known as Accelerating Climate-Resilient and Low-Carbon Development, sets measures to advance the pliability of the continent’s resources – its land, people, cities and water–including other measures to further renewable energy and reinforce early caution systems.
At the event, a senior executive of MASEN, the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy responsible for leading the nation’s move to renewable energy, reviewed Morocco’s national plan and expertise in renewable energy, mainly Concentrated Solar Power (CSP).
He said the success of the nation’s hard work in the field can be an encouragement to Sub-Saharan Africa, a region perfectly well-matched to the CSP technology owing to its abundant sunshine.
He stated that so far, solar power only comprises of about 0.5% of the power in sub-Saharan states.
Morocco is dedicated to stopping its reliance on imported fossil fuels and to taking action on climate change. To attain this goal, it laid down an objective to meet 42% of its energy generating capacity needs via renewables by  the year 2020– a number that was changed to 52% by 2030 at last year’s climate discussion in Paris.
These side events are hosted in readiness for the implementation on November 14 of the “Marrakech Declaration: Forging Sustainability, Stability and Security in Africa.
