The SEFA grant is aimed at encouraging private investment into hydropower projects through Ethiopia’s Renewable Energy Programme, the ADB announced on 21 May. It will strengthen the Government’s capacity to undertake bankability and technical analysis, including feasibility assessments of projects in the priority pipeline, and also provides for environmental and social impact assessments, resettlement action plans and preparation of bidding documents for hydro projects. “A well-structured procurement framework is crucial in mobilizing the investments necessary to achieve universal energy access in Africa. The SEFA programme will boost private IPPs participation, and spur investments into the Ethiopian hydropower sector,” said Wale Shonibare, the Bank’s acting vice president for power, energy, climate change and green growth. “The programme also complements the assistance provided by the Bank’s Institutional IPP/PPP Support Project, as well as the Bank-financed Mekele-Dallol and Semera-Afdera Power Supply for Industrial Development and Access Scale-up Project”, Shonibare added. Development of its renewable energy potential will help meet the targets set out by the Government in its National Electrification Programme, which aims for universal access by 2025 through a 65 per cent on-grid and 35 per cent off-grid combination, as well as its goal to transform the country into a regional energy hub by 2030.
