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By Adewale Sanyaolu
The Rockefeller Foundation and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet have ramped up the fight against Africa’s energy poverty, with a commitment of over $100 million to fast-track Mission 300.
The Mission 300, an ambitious drive to connect 300 million people to electricity by 2030, was made at the Powering Africa Summit in Washington, D.C., USA, recently.
The latest pledge marks a tenfold increase from the initial $10 million commitment announced in September 2024, underscoring growing momentum behind one of the continent’s most ambitious electrification drives, spearheaded by the World Bank Group and the African Development Bank.
President of The Rockefeller Foundation, Dr. Rajiv Shah, announced the expanded commitment during a high-level fireside chat with U.S. Energy Secretary, Chris Wright, highlighting the initiative’s central role in tackling energy poverty and advancing clean cooking solutions across sub-Saharan Africa.
Since its initial investment, the Foundation and the Alliance have moved beyond pledges to tangible delivery, strengthening government capacity, unlocking private sector investment, accelerating project pipelines, and advancing electrification efforts across nearly two dozen African countries.
Vice President for Power, Energy, Climate, and Green Growth at the African Development Bank, Dr. Kevin Kariuki, emphasised that Mission 300 is firmly execution-driven.
“Mission 300 is fundamentally about delivery, turning ambition into results at scale. Catalytic capital from partners such as The Rockefeller Foundation and the Global Energy Alliance is critical to de-risk investments, strengthen government systems, and unlock significantly larger flows of public and private finance,” he said.
For The Rockefeller Foundation, the initiative represents a strategic bet on energy access as a catalyst for economic transformation.
“The Rockefeller Foundation has made its biggest-ever investment in electricity access because it remains the most powerful pathway out of large-scale poverty,” Shah said.
“Mission 300 is about putting countries in the lead, leveraging frontier technologies, and delivering measurable results that connect millions, especially Africa’s growing youth population, to jobs, dignity, and prosperity,”.
About 730 million people globally still lack access to electricity, with roughly 85 percent of them in sub-Saharan Africa. The deficit continues to constrain healthcare delivery, education, digital inclusion, job creation, and broader economic growth. Studies consistently show that lack of electricity is one of the strongest predictors of extreme poverty.
Chief Executive Officer of the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, Woochong Um, stressed that expanding access must translate into real economic outcomes.
“Reliable, affordable electricity is the backbone of jobs, prosperity, and resilience. Our focus is not just on connections, but on ensuring those connections drive lasting economic opportunity for communities across Africa,” he said.
Mission 300, a joint initiative of the World Bank and African Development Bank, supported by key partners including The Rockefeller Foundation, the Global Energy Alliance, and Sustainable Energy for All, is designed to convert commitments into measurable impact through national energy compacts, policy reforms, investment programs, and private sector mobilisation.
To date, the $100 million commitment spans 23 countries, including Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia, Senegal, and Zambia, with funding split between The Rockefeller Foundation and its RF Catalytic Capital platform, and the Global Energy Alliance.
The investment is already driving targeted interventions across the energy value chain. These include: strengthening national delivery systems through technical assistance and fellowships; scaling clean cooking solutions to reduce reliance on polluting fuels; expanding financing for energy-efficient appliances that support small businesses and agriculture; and advancing African-led research and regulatory capacity in the energy sector.
Additional efforts are focused on boosting off-grid and distributed renewable energy through investments in platforms like Zafiri, while new technical assistance facilities are being deployed to accelerate project execution and improve efficiency in government-led electrification programmes.
The initiative is also helping to unlock broader financing ecosystems, supporting investment-friendly environments through partnerships with development finance institutions and private sector funds.
Since its launch in April 2024, Mission 300 has already connected approximately 44 million people to electricity, with tens of millions more expected by 2026. National Energy Compacts, critical frameworks for aligning reforms, investments, and delivery, have now been established in 30 countries.
With funding accelerating and implementation gathering pace, Mission 300 is increasingly positioning itself as a cornerstone effort in closing Africa’s energy access gap, and unlocking the continent’s economic potential at scale.
