NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, August 6, 2019

By Ken Silverstein

The sun may be shining on Africa. And solar power may become one of its most critical economic development tools. Not only can it bring electricity to rural regions of the continent but it can do so inexpensively, facilitating new businesses, medical operations and educational opportunities.

The fundamental precept behind clean energy is that it is locally discovered and locally consumed. And that’s true for solar power combined with energy storage and microgrids. In the early years, the cost of solar technologies was expensive but today, solar panels have proliferated and prices have nosedived. At the same time, the capital markets have been drawn to distributed energy while the public has become more knowledgable about green energy’s benefits.