Around 590 million people across Africa – 70 per cent of the Sub-Saharan population – have no access to affordable, reliable and sustainable energy resources, including electricity.
For these marginalised communities, off-grid solutions, and solar energy in particular, are an effective way to power their homes and benefit from the economic advantages they bring. In 2019, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development office funded Africa Clean Energy, a four-year programme that aims to catalyse a market-based approach through the private sector across fourteen African countries.
As part of the ACE Business Programme, Tetra Tech International Development Europe is leading the Africa Clean Energy Technical Assistance Facility (ACE-TAF). With a focus on high-quality stand-alone solar systems, our team is working with the private sector to increase access to clean, reliable energy and improve the well-being and livelihoods of more than 10 million people across Africa.
Our programme activities focus on three areas:
1. Enabling Environment: We assist governments to put in place policies and regulations that support market development and help improve quality standards so that the delivery of stand-alone solar systems can be fostered through the private sector.
2. Knowledge Management: We gather and share our expertise and what we have learned about the benefits and success factors of private sector delivery of off-grid solar energy and then use that knowledge to further the success of the ACE-TAF.
3. Coordination: We promote collaboration between similar initiatives and programmes in the sector and encourage donors to support ACE’s vision of bringing clean energy to remote households across Africa.
The ACE Business programme is delivered in partnership with the International Finance Corporation’s Lighting Global programme, the Africa Enterprise Challange Fund’s Renewable Energy and Adaption to Climate Change Technologies Household Solar programme, the World Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance programme and the African Development Bank’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa fund.
Since 2019, Tetra Tech’s work on the African Clean Energy Technical Assistance Facility has contributed to a number of improvements to off-grid solar energy across Africa:
- Nearly 13 million people across Africa have gained access to clean, affordable and sustainable energy since the start of the programme
- We supported 40 institutions to improve their policies, regulations, advocacy and capacity
- We supported governments to develop and approve 26 off-grid energy policies and regulations
- We have produced 29 high-quality papers, studies and reports
- We jointly completed or increased collaboration with our partners for 6 programme activities.
“Through ACE TAF’s activities and knowledge management, stand-alone solar companies are in a much better position to develop projects and assert themselves in the off-grid solar market. With more solar power coming to remote areas, this is an important step towards giving communities universal access to electricity by 2025.”
Karim Ndiaye, President of COPERES, Renewable Energies Business Council of Senegal
