The African Union Commission has inaugurated a High-Level Technical Oversight Committee to drive the implementation of the African Single Electricity Market (AfSEM), marking a major step toward integrating Africa’s fragmented power systems.
The committee was established following a three-day technical session in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, bringing together stakeholders working to develop the rules and systems needed for cross-border electricity trading across the continent.
The initiative seeks to connect Africa’s five regional power pools into a single continental electricity market, allowing countries with surplus generation to sell power to neighbouring markets with supply deficits.
The African Union says the move will support greater electricity security, improve the use of existing generation capacity and create a more integrated market for investment in power infrastructure.
The framework includes work on harmonising regulations, electricity trading, market settlement and cross-border transmission rules.
The initiative comes as Africa continues to face a major electricity access gap, with hundreds of millions of people lacking reliable access to power.
The success of the single market will, however, depend on countries implementing compatible regulatory frameworks, expanding cross-border transmission infrastructure and creating conditions that can attract private investment.
The new technical oversight committee will therefore play a key role in moving AfSEM from a continental policy framework to actual cross-border electricity trading.