The Middle East Energy-unveiled Africa Energy Plan is anticipated to be beneficial to Nigeria.
To that purpose, the inaugural African Energy Expo, set for February 2024 in Kigali, Rwanda, has been launched by the Middle East Energy Exhibition and Conference in Dubai.
A first-of-its-kind trade fair, the African Energy Expo builds on Middle East Energy’s 48-year history and aims to promote sustainable, cutting-edge energy sources and accelerate Africa’s energy transformation.
Research has shown that Africa is the world’s least electrified continent with projections that as of 2022, approximately 600 million people on the continent remained without access to power.
The pandemic, with its attendant lockdowns, supply chain disruptions and diversion of fiscal resources by governments did even further damage.
More worrisome is that Nigeria has one of the lowest net electricity generation per capita rates in the world with an estimated national electrification rate of 55 percent and a rural electrification rate of only 39 percent.
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The above and many more critical factors have impeded growth in the continent’s energy sectors and have shown the urgent need for greater investment opportunities, collaborations, partnerships, and technological advancements.
The African Energy Expo is a first-of-its-kind trade show, and an extension of Middle East Energy’s 48-year legacy, aimed at promoting sustainable, innovative energy sources and driving the African energy transition.
The African Energy Expo will enable the establishment of resilient energy systems and infrastructures across all regions in Africa, by providing an unmatched opportunity for stakeholders across East, West, North, South, and Central African countries to connect and network.
The new addition to the already extensive energy portfolio of the company was announced by Azzan Mohamed, Exhibition Director – Energy Portfolio MEA; Ade Yesufu, Exhibition Manager – Energy Portfolio MEA; and members of the Rwandan government represented by H.E Emmanuel Hategeka, the Ambassador of Rwanda to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Yves Gahonzire, Business Development Manager, Rwanda Convention Bureau.
Azzan Mohamed detailed how the upcoming event will create more avenues for Pan-African energy sectors to strengthen relationships and unlock investment opportunities.
He said: “since inception, the goal of Middle East Energy has been to drive transformation in the energy sectors of the Middle East and African regions. We have played a strategic role in bridging the gap between buyers, sellers, and all agents in the energy and power ecosystem through our events portfolio which includes Middle East Energy, Nigeria Energy, and Egypt Energy.
“The upcoming African Energy Expo will drive our goal forward by fostering collaborations between stakeholders across East, West, North, South, and Central African countries. In addition to being a platform for the discovery of the latest technological innovations, it will feature a high-level Leadership Forum with engaging panel discussions, keynotes, and networking opportunities.”
The Ambassador of Rwanda to the UAE, H.E Emmanuel Hategeka, also said: “we are delighted to host this event in Rwanda, a country that has made positive advancements in the energy transition to renewables but is also the second most attractive MICE destination on the continent. Over the past two decades, we have consciously invested in the stability, safety, as well as infrastructure of the country and ensured that Rwanda is an open-to-business nation.”
Story adapted from Leadership
