Tanzania and Nigeria are leading African countries in efforts to expand electricity access, as governments and development partners accelerate programmes aimed at connecting millions of households still without power across the continent.
The push forms part of Mission 300, a joint initiative by the World Bank Group and the African Development Bank Group to connect 300 million people in Africa to electricity by 2030 through a combination of grid expansion, mini-grids, solar home systems and policy reforms.
The broader strategy reflects a shift toward a mix of grid and off-grid energy systems, including solar home systems and mini-grids, as countries seek faster and more cost-effective ways to expand access in underserved areas, according to the programme framework outlined by the institutions.
Tanzania has emerged as one of the strongest performers, with nearly 8 million people connected since 2016 under its rural electrification programme. Of these, about 5 million connections since July 2023 are counted under Mission 300, alongside a further 2.5 million from a follow-on programme.
The country’s delivery rate has risen sharply in recent years, increasing to about 2.5 million connections per year, compared with roughly 400,000 per year in the five years preceding 2023, according to programme data.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, has recorded about 4.5 million new electricity connections across three main programmes, the Nigeria Electrification Project, the Nigeria Distribution Sector Recovery Programme and the DARES initiative.
Much of Nigeria’s recent expansion has been driven by solar home systems and mini-grids, which have become central to efforts to extend electricity access to rural and underserved communities outside the main grid network.
Beyond the two leading cases, countries including Uganda, Senegal, Niger, Sierra Leone, Angola, Guinea-Bissau and Mozambique are also making progress under various electrification programmes, though at smaller and less-detailed scales in reported data.
In Ethiopia, earlier grid expansion efforts were already delivering more than 350,000 household connections per year in 2023, highlighting existing momentum in some large markets before Mission 300 was launched.
In Nigeria, a single quarter in 2022 saw about 330,000 households, or 1.65 million people, connected through solar home systems alone, underscoring the speed at which off-grid solutions can scale.
The World Bank Group and African Development Bank say Mission 300 is not a single project but a coordination framework that aggregates results from existing and new investments across more than 40 countries.
The initiative tracks only verified household electricity connections delivered between July 2023 and December 2030, with data drawn from utilities, project implementation units and government agencies and subject to validation before reporting.
Officials behind the programme say the 50 million milestone reflects not only increased financing but also improved coordination between governments, utilities and development partners, helping convert investment pipelines into faster on-the-ground results.
The programme still faces a target of 300 million connections by 2030, but development banks say the current pace suggests accelerated delivery is possible if implementation momentum is sustained.
