Despite raising renewable energy capacity to 70 GW, Africa's share of the global total is declining

  • Africa’s renewable energy capacity more than doubled between 2015 (34.6 GW) and 2024 (70 GW).
  • Despite this growth, Africa’s global share fell from 1.87% in 2015 to 1.57% in 2024.
  • The decline in global share highlights that other regions are expanding renewable energy capacity much faster than Africa.
  • Between 2020 and 2024 alone, Africa added 18.5 GW of renewable energy capacity.
  • The sharpest annual increase occurred between 2022 and 2023, with capacity rising by 6.4 GW.
  • The percentage share of global renewable energy for Africa has consistently trended downward since 2018.
  • Africa’s renewable energy growth, while positive, is not yet keeping pace with the global energy transition.

Africa’s renewable energy sector has experienced steady growth in installed capacity over the last decade, increasing from 34.6 GW in 2015 to 70 GW by 2024. This shows a commitment to expanding clean energy infrastructure across the continent.

However, while the volume has more than doubled, Africa’s share of global renewable energy capacity has actually declined. This reveals a concerning trend: other regions are accelerating their investments and scaling up much faster than Africa.

Source:

IRENA

Period:

2015-2024
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Africa’s renewable capacity has more than doubled since 2016, but its share of global capacity remains below 2%
  • About 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity.
  • Africa has 20% of the world's population but receives less than 3% of global energy investment.
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  • South Africa and Egypt together account for all of Africa's nuclear power and 59% of its non-hydro renewables.
  • Hydropower, the largest non-fossil source at 188.6 TWh, tells a different geographic story, with 91% generated outside South Africa and Egypt, mainly in Eastern, Middle, and Western Africa.
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Non-fossil generation overtook coal in 2023, and the gap has widened every year since
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Egypt overtook South Africa's electricity generation in 2024 and extended its lead in 2025
  • Africa’s share of global electricity generation rose only from 2.6% in 1985 to 3.1% in 2025.
  • Africa’s electricity generation increased 283% over the past 40 years.
  • Egypt overtook South Africa as Africa’s largest electricity producer in 2024.
  • Egypt generated 242.4 TWh in 2025, up from 30.3 TWh in 1985.
  • South Africa generated 231.1 TWh in 2025, down from its 263.5 TWh peak in 2007.
  • Egypt and South Africa accounted for 24.5% of Africa’s electricity generation in 2025.
Nigeria retained Africa’s third-highest refinery throughput as output reached a record high in 2025
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  • Throughput increased by 50.6% from 239,000 b/d in 2024.
  • The 2025 level was more than 20 times the 17,600 b/d recorded in 2023.
  • Nigeria remained Africa’s third-highest, behind Algeria and Egypt.
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East African countries accounted for seven of the continent's 15 biggest electricity access gains in 23 years
  • Eswatini recorded Africa’s largest electricity access gain, rising by 66 percentage points from 2000 to 2023.
  • Kenya and Rwanda followed with gains of 61 pp and 58 pp, respectively.
  • East African countries accounted for 7 of Africa’s top 15 electricity access improvements.
  • Comoros, Ghana and Cape Verde reached very high access levels by 2023, at 90%, 90% and 99% respectively.
  • Nigeria’s electricity access improved by 18 percentage points, from 43% in 2000 to 61% in 2023.
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  • Some countries were absent from the ranking because they had already reached high access levels by 2000.
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