給電於民：非洲電氣化勢在必行

Power to the People：Electrify Africa Now

給電於民：非洲電氣化勢在必行

n Cote d"Ivoire， children carry backpacks to school with built-in solar panels. When they get home， they plug the panels into lamps so they can do their homework.

On the other side of the continent， rural households pay as little as 50 cents a day for solar electricity systems that power three lights，five phone-charging connections and a radio.

Across Africa， these and many other ingenious solutions are helping to meet the continent"s huge energy needs much faster than conventional means.

That speed is critical. Africa"s energy needs are not only huge， but they are also urgent. Day after day， the continent"s lack of modern energy is holding back economic growth， job creation， sustainable agriculture，health and education.

The challenge for governments， their development partners and the private sector is how to electrify millions of African households，remote communities and small-scale entrepreneurs as quickly as possible. To meet that challenge， countries need to consider every available option， including off-grid household systems and mini-grids， as well as the expansion of national grids.

New technologies offer promising ways to close Africa"s energy gap more quickly than would be possible by relying on grid connections alone. Off-grid solar power and mini-grids， as standalone sources of energy generating power where it"s needed， have vast potential to advance access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa.

Off-grid solar products can act as rungs on an「energy ladder」，providing a range of energy services to households and enterprises with different energy needs and incomes. Families can take advantage of innovative pay-as-you-go schemes， often using mobile phone payment to move from solar lighting onto systems that are a step-up and able to generate enough power for several household appliances.

Community services such as schools and health clinics can also be powered using off-grid solar energy， which can also improve the productivity of farms and small companies. Technological innovation means that mini-grids can also offer sustainable permanent alternatives， especially as reliable and affordable products come on-stream that are attractive to small and medium-sized enterprises operating far from the national grid.

In short， off-grid and mini-grid power has a crucial role to play in meeting the three great energy challenges that African governments face: providing all their citizens with access to secure and affordable energy; building the energy infrastructure needed to drive inclusive growth and create jobs; and limiting carbon emissions.

To make that happen， African governments need to support the development of an enabling environment through which companies can enter energy generation， transmission and distribution markets， climb the value chain and build the investment partnerships that can drive growth and create jobs.

To tap the potential of new energy technologies， African governments need all the support they can get. Bilateral and multilateral donors have pledged billions of dollars to Africa"s energy transition， but little of that money is moving yet. Donors need to realize that Africa"s energy imperative is urgent.

On-grid and off-grid， we have the technologies that Africa needs to bring energy to everyone. Let"s get to work.

在象牙海岸，孩子們背著裝有內置太陽能電池板的書包上學。回到家後，他們把電池板插到燈里就可以做家庭作業。

在大陸的另一邊，農村家庭每天支付區區50美分來使用太陽能發電系統，供三盞燈照明、給五部電話充電和收聽一台收音機。

在非洲各地，這些以及很多其他巧妙解決方案正以比常規手段快得多的速度幫助滿足非洲大陸的巨大電力需求。

這個速度至關重要。非洲的電力需求不僅巨大，而且迫切。日復一日，這片大陸在現代能源方面的缺乏正在阻礙經濟增長、就業創造、可持續農業、衛生和教育。

政府與其發展夥伴以及私營部門面臨的挑戰是，如何儘快讓數百萬非洲家庭、偏遠社區和小型企業用上電。為應對這項挑戰，各國需要考慮所有可選擇方案，包括家用離網系統和微型電網，以及擴展國家電網。

新技術可以帶來有前途的辦法，比僅依靠電網連接更快地填補非洲電力缺口。離網太陽能和微型電網在需要時可作為獨立的發電方式，擁有在撒哈拉沙漠以南非洲地區普及電力的巨大潛力。

離網太陽能產品可以充當「能源階梯」的梯級，為有著不同能源需求和收入的家庭和企業提供各種各樣的能源服務。家庭可以利用創新性的即付即用方案，往往是使用手機支付，由太陽能照明上升一步，轉到能為多台家用電器生產足夠電力的系統。

學校和診所等社區服務也可以使用離網太陽能供電，離網太陽能還可以提高農場和小公司的生產率。技術創新意味著微型電網也可以提供可持續的永久性替代方案，特別是作為對遠離國家電網運營的中小企業具有吸引力的可靠平價產品投入生產。

簡而言之，離網和微型電網電力可以發揮重要作用來應對非洲各國政府面臨的三大電力挑戰：讓所有公民都能獲得有保障的平價電力，建設可促進包容性增長和創造就業所需的電力基礎設施，限制碳排放。

為實現這一點，非洲各國政府需要扶持形成一個有利環境，讓企業可以藉此進入電力生產、傳輸和配送市場，向價值鏈高端攀升，並建立可以推動增長並創造就業的投資夥伴關係。

為挖掘新能源技術的潛力，非洲各國政府需要得到儘可能多的支持。雙邊和多邊捐助機構已經承諾為非洲的能源轉型提供數十億美元，但這筆錢幾乎完全沒有到位。捐助機構需要明白，非洲的能源需求十分迫切。

不管是併網還是離網，我們擁有非洲把電力帶給每個人所需的技術。我們行動起來吧。（作者為聯合國前秘書長。李莎譯自美國有線電視新聞網網站3月13日文章）

喜歡這篇文章嗎？立刻分享出去讓更多人知道吧！