The United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) has announced the launch of Etihad 7 Program, which is designed to ensure green funding for energy projects across the African continent.
Directed by both the MoFAIC and the Office of the Special Envoy for Climate Change, the developmental program aims to provide clean electricity to 100 million African people by 2035. Securing energy investments from both private and public are key policy instruments of the program.
The progressive initiative is aligned to the Middle Eastern country’s plans to contribute to international sustainability targets and its commitment to continued collaboration with Africa.
“United by economic, cultural, political and people-to-people ties, our two regions are inextricably linked, with enormous potential for further cooperation in the years to come. One of the keys to unlocking that potential, super-charging Africa’s economies, and allowing millions of people to contribute to building a prosperous continent is electricity – specifically, renewable energy,” stipulated H.E. Sheikh Shakhboot bin Nahyan Al Nahyan, Minister of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
Etihad 7 will support electrification efforts throughout the African continent, facilitating the low-carbon transition and empowering African countries to meet both the energy needs of its 600 million people and global development targets.
The UAE has a track record of energy development initiatives in Africa, through the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development program. Via this Fund, the UAE has committed to supporting the development of several 500-Megawatt peak (MWp) solar photovoltaic power plants in Sudan, as well as its participation in the development of the 50 MWp Blitta solar power plant in Togo.
