The United States (US) has passed a bipartisan legislation to bring affordable and reliable energy to many of the 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa.

The US House Foreign Affairs Committee passed the amended Electrify Africa Act which will improve access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa. This will be achieved through a comprehensive U.S. government approach to electricity projects in the region, at no cost to the American taxpayer.

The Electrify Africa Act (H.R. 2548) will establish a U.S. strategy to support affordable, reliable electricity in sub-Saharan Africa in order to improve economic growth, health and education in Africa, while helping job creation in America through greater exports.

The legislation encourages the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to use loan guarantees, partnerships and grants to increase electricity in sub-Saharan Africa. It also directs the Treasury Department to persuade the World Bank and African Development Bank to increase electrification investments in sub-Saharan Africa as well as instructs the Overseas Private Investment Corporation to prioritise electrical sector investments in sub-Saharan Africa.

Chairperson of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Ed Royce says Africa, with its nearly one billion consumers, has great economic potential. “We need to be engaged. Where the United States has left a void for economic investment in Africa, China has stepped in to direct nearly $2 billion towards energy projects on the continent. If the United States wishes to tap into this potential consumer base, we must act now,” he says.

Royce says the act provides a clear and comprehensive U.S. policy that allows the private sector to proceed with the certainty it needs to generate electricity in Africa.