The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved an equity investment of $20 million in Evolution Fund III to help fund renewable energy projects across sub-Saharan Africa.

The Evolution Fund III is a pan-African clean and sustainable energy private equity fund that is mobilising about $400 million into renewable energy and resource-efficiency assets across sub-Saharan Africa over a ten-year period.

The bank made this known in a statement released on its website on Wednesday.

SDG Seven: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

Over 640 million Africans lack access to energy, corresponding to an electricity access rate for African countries at just over 40 percent, the lowest in the world.

Data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) shows that sub-Saharan Africa’s share of the global population without access to electricity rose to 77 percent from 74 percent before the pandemic.

The AfDB explained that Inspired Evolution Investment Management is a well-established fund manager with more than 15 years of experience and a track record of deploying more than $310 million in renewable energy projects in African counties.

It also said the fund manager, through its predecessor funds, has delivered 21 renewable energy projects.

‘EVIII aims to broaden geographic and technology scope to incorporate North Africa as well as several SSA countries and decentralised energy business models as the key climate mitigation and energy transition’, the statement read.

According to the bank, this support will contribute to an additional 2,162MW of installed renewable power generation capacity, 1.8 million tonnes of CO2 emission savings, and a green and sustainable growth across Africa.

The Vice President of AfDB’s Power, Energy, Climate Change and Green Growth Complex, Kevin Kariuki, said the bank was committed to boosting its portfolio of renewable energy projects and encouraging private investment in renewable and efficient energy solutions.

Photo source: DFID