The annual Powering Africa Summit returns to Washington DC this March providing a platform for Africa’s energy sector stakeholders and developers to engage multilateral, global investors and technology providers.

The meeting will present backbone energy and infrastructure projects to the most proactive partners.

The Summit in 2016 welcomed 620 attendees from 18 countries and whilst 65 percent of delegates originated from North America, investors from Europe and Asia also participated, seeking partnerships with leading technology companies, governmental agencies, the World Bank, IFC, and others to drive forward their African projects already under development.

The Summit is supported again by Power Africa, the U.S. government interagency created to establish 60 million new household and business connections by 2030, aiding the potential to double the size of some African economies and the spending power of the projected 1.5 billion people.

Also supporting the meeting is the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), US Africa Development Foundation and the US Africa Business Center (USABC).

The $9.7 billion plan to double electricity access in the world’s poorest continent — has fallen well short of its goals, so far producing less than 5 percent of the new power generation it promised.

Obama announced Power Africa four years ago with an ambitious goal: to add 10,000 megawatts of power and supply electricity to 20 million households within five years.

As he addressed the U.S.-Africa Business Forum in New York last year in September, the project has yielded less than 400 megawatts of new power after running into political and economic difficulties.

Article Source: The Exchange