Top 10 Countries With The Lowest Access To Electricity
A simple electricity outlet in their house would be a dream come true for many people in Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite rural electrification programs, numerous countries throughout the world continue to lack widespread access to electricity. Furthermore, in many areas, people with access to electricity must rely on intermittent and poor power. Statistics show that 67% of the developing world still lacks access to residential power. The capacity to experience a multitude of social, economic, and technological improvements is one of the many benefits of having access to electricity. In Africa, a French consulting firm has established an energy facility initiative to accelerate the building of rural infrastructures for distributing electrical power to the continent’s most distant locations. Another African effort has been the installation of renewable energy sources. such as wind, solar, and geothermal generators, to power rural African communities. Here are Top 10 Countries With The Lowest Access To Electricity listed below.
10. Tanzania (15.3% of population)
Tanzania urgently needs electricity, since just 15.3% of the population has access to it. Despite this, the country has a varied range of potential energy sources, including biomass, solar, wind, coal, geothermal, natural gas, and uranium. Unfortunately, the vast majority of these have remained untapped. Rural areas rely on biomass gathered from Tanzanian forests to provide around 80% of their energy demands, including cooking and heating, aggravating habitat devastation. A study was conducted to evaluate the possibility of bringing electricity to Tanzania’s rural areas, however most options were found to be impracticable. TANESCO is the national utility that provides the majority of the country’s limited electricity supply.
9. Niger (14.4% of population)
Niger struggles to deliver electricity to its citizens since the utility barely serves 14.4% of the population. The vast majority of Niger’s population lives in rural areas, the vast majority of which are powerless. Although electricity is not the major energy source for the residents, and most are accustomed to live without it, availability would assist in economic growth and general well-being. In this region, like in many other parts of Africa, biomass is the most often used energy source. Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is another fuel that may become increasingly popular in houses in the future.
8. Sierra Leone (14.2% of population)
Currently, just about 14.2% of Sierra Leoneans have access to electricity. The World Bank has approved a $40 million credit line for Sierra Leone in order to expand access to power in rural areas. The Energy Sector Utility Reform Project will create a functional management structure to improve national energy distribution across the country. As a consequence, social services, health care, and education would improve, as would new economic opportunities for rural households in Sierra Leone.
7. Burkina Faso (13.1% of population)
Burkina Faso is also suffering from a lack of energy, with only 13.1% of its population having access to electricity. In 2013, the World Bank authorized a $50 million credit to aid the country’s energy supply development project. This would include installing new transmission lines to improve energy supplies to around 40 rural settlements. The goal is to build a more reliable electrical infrastructure that will improve the lives of those living in rural areas. This project will also seek to expand the capacity and reach of Burkina Faso’s hydroelectric and thermal power facilities. All of these efforts are done with the goal of improving the living standards of the country’s citizens.
6. Central African Republic (10.8% of population)
Electricity is available to just 10.8% of the Central African Republic’s population. The country’s recurring rebellions and military coups, which have resulted in a series of economic crises, have been a key reason of this shortage. This was compounded by the migration of nearly 930,000 of its citizens due to local unrest in 2004. In truth, half of the country’s population requires humanitarian assistance. It will most likely be some time before the country’s electrical requirements are handled, if they are addressed at all, until the country has more stable government.
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5. Liberia (9.8% of population)
Liberia, like many other countries, has a restricted supply of electricity, with just 9.8% of the population having access to it. The majority of the country’s energy is sourced from biomass (80%), with the majority of it being utilized for cooking and heating. However, over 85% of Monrovians utilize charcoal. Some remote homes have generators, which run on pricey, imported fuel. Liberia’s electrical and petroleum resources are mostly used for transportation and urban industrial activities.
4. Malawi (9.8% of population)
Malawi lacks the necessary infrastructure to deliver rural electricity, and just 9.8% of the country’s population has access to it. The Energy Sector Support Project initiative of the government has included research into the installation of new hydropower stations, as well as those powered by wind, solar, and bio-gas sources. The World Bank loaned $85 million to assist finance a section of the project. If this project is successful, the government plans to expand its electricity reach into rural areas.
3. Burundi (6.5% of population)
Burundi suffers from a similar shortage of energy, with only 6.5% of the population having access to electricity. Despite the fact that rural areas house 90% of the country’s inhabitants, only a tiny minority of those individuals have access to power. Burundi’s hydroelectric power supply has frequent power interruptions during the dry season. Biomass consumption provides for approximately 94% of total energy requirements, with biomass burnt consisting of fuel wood, charcoal, agricultural waste, and bagasse. Alternative energy sources include solar and wind energy. Since 2010, the Ministry of Energy and Mines has worked with EnDev to bring solar energy to rural areas of the country.
2. Chad (6.4% of population)
Chad lacks the infrastructure needed to deliver much-needed rural power, and only 6.4% of the population has access to it. Most rural areas also lack transportation and electricity. The majority of the power is generated by geothermal facilities, with wood serving as the principal fuel source. Agriculture employs around 80% of the country’s workforce. The Chad-Cameroon pipeline and the development of some of the country’s key oil sources rely on international finance.
1. South Sudan (5.1% of population)
Only 5.1% of South Sudanese have access to electricity. It has less than 1% paved roads and less than 1% of the population lives in formal, Western-style residences. Thirty years of violence and government neglect have resulted in such deprivation. The government is actively striving to lure overseas investors to participate in a variety of commercial enterprises in South Sudan. Many will be for power generation and distribution, public transportation infrastructure, and real estate development.
Which Country Has the Least Access to Electricity?
Only 6.5% of the population of Burundi has access to electricity, the lowest rate in the world.