Ethiopia Unveils Ambitious National Energy Compact at Mission 300 Conference in South Africa

Cape town: Ethiopia has presented its National Energy Compact at the Mission 300 conference in Cape Town, South Africa, outlining an ambitious roadmap to expand electricity access, attract investment, and strengthen the country's renewable-based power sector. The conference, organized under the Mission 300 initiative of the World Bank and the African Development Bank, aims to provide electricity access to 300 million people across Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030.According to Ethiopian News Agency, the gathering brought together energy and finance ministers, development partners, lending institutions, and private sector leaders to accelerate energy access across the continent. Presenting Ethiopia's compact during the forum, Minister of Water and Energy Habtamu Itefa said the strategy is anchored on five key pillars: expanding electricity and clean cooking access, strengthening energy infrastructure, increasing regional power trade, enhancing institutional capacity in the sector, and promoting private sector part icipation.Habtamu said the government is working toward 75 percent national electrification coverage by 2030, a target expected to deliver electricity to an additional 50 million Ethiopians. He noted that Ethiopia is building on its strong renewable energy foundation, dominated by hydropower, while expanding generation, transmission, and distribution infrastructure. The country plans to increase its installed power generation capacity to 14,000 megawatts by 2030, while maintaining its position as one of Africa's leading renewable energy producers.The compact also prioritizes expanding clean cooking access to 58 percent of the population as part of broader efforts to improve energy access and reduce environmental impacts. Habtamu highlighted Ethiopia's growing role in regional energy integration, noting that the country already exports electricity to neighboring states and is developing additional cross-border interconnections to strengthen regional power trade.He also pointed to ongoing reforms aimed at improving the efficiency and financial sustainability of the power sector, while creating a more favorable environment for private sector investment. Ethiopia is among the second cohort of Mission 300 countries and developed its National Energy Compact as a framework to accelerate electrification and mobilize large-scale investment. The compact was formally endorsed on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2025 in the presence of Ethiopian President Taye Atske Selassie.Addressing participants, Habtamu invited development partners and private investors to expand their engagement in Ethiopia's energy sector, assuring them of the government's commitment to supporting strategic investments. Mission 300, launched in April 2024 by the World Bank Group and the African Development Bank, is a flagship initiative aimed at dramatically expanding electricity access across Sub-Saharan Africa through policy reforms, increased financing, and stronger public-private partnerships.