The African Development Bank has approved major financing packages to boost electricity generation, transmission, and clean energy access in Tanzania, Rwanda, and Zambia. In Tanzania, $282 million will support the installation of submarine power cables linking Zanzibar and Mafia Islands to the national grid, increasing power capacity and expanding access to electricity and clean cooking for hundreds of thousands. The country aims to raise energy and clean cooking access from 46 to 75 percent by 2030.
In Rwanda, €173.84 million will go toward modernizing the national grid and expanding access through on-grid and off-grid solutions, clean cooking technologies, and street lighting. Meanwhile in Zambia, the AfDB has committed $40 million to Project Zafiri, a distributed energy platform designed to accelerate renewable energy access. The bank anticipates that more than half of new electricity connections in Africa by 2030 will come from such decentralized energy sources.