The Rural Energy Challenge More than 1 billion people currently lack access to electricity services; more than half of them live in Sub-Saharan Africa (IEA 2016). Most governments and communities in the region have looked to the central grid as the primary choice for electrification. However, technological improvement is enabling decentralized options, such as mini-grids, to emerge as complementary sources of electricity.

Mini-grids—electrical generation and distribution systems of less than 10 megawatts (MW)—represent a relatively rapid means of providing electricity to rural centers that are far from grid infrastructure and unlikely to be connected in the short or medium term. Unlike small solar home systems, which generally provide power for lighting, mobile phone charging and appliances like fans and televisions, mini-grids can provide electricity for productive uses, such as grain milling, and they can be built in ways that allow for connection to a centralized grid.

These advantages have led the International Energy Agency (IEA) to project that mini-grids and stand-alone off-grid systems will play a key role in extending electricity services in rural Africa.