Solar is cheapest energy option for Africa, but gas could be valuable

The world was currently in the midst of an energy crisis. This affected countries differently, but it affected all countries. This was highlighted by International Energy Agency (IEA) deputy executive director Mary Burce Warlick in her keynote address to the Africa Energy Week conference in Cape Town, on Tuesday. Coming on the heels of the Covid-19 pandemic, this had increased on the finances of African countries. A consequence of this was that, between 2019 and 2021, according to IEA data, the number of Africans with access to electricity had declined by 4%, or by 25-million people. This was in contrast to the increasing access to electricity recorded between 2013 and 2019. The energy crisis had also driven up food prices.