STAFF WRITER
NAMIBIA will connect 200 000 more households to the national electricity grid by 2030.
Speaking at the signing ceremony of service level agreements with electricity distributors Executive Director and Accounting Officer in the Ministry of Industry and Mines Ben Nangombe said they are targeting to raise electricity access from 59.4 % to 70 % by the year 2030.
“That means connecting more than 200,000 additional households, many of them in rural and peri-urban communities. This is a national mission. To meet this goal mobilising all resources as necessary. We are engaging partners as a strategic necessity. And we are leveraging a broad range of institutional capacity available to us, “ Nangombe said.
He said the signed service level agreements is a reflection of the strategy to increase access to power. I must emphasise that
He said the service level agreements are underwritten by financial resources from the Ministry of Industries, Mines and Energy.
The agreements saw the government allocating N$30 million to the City of Windhoek for electrification.“Last year, they executed a similar agreement, connecting over 800 homes with a N$15 million allocation, mainly in peri-urban areas. CENORED will receive N$20 million for household electrification and an additional N$16 million for major upgrades at the Tsumkwe and Gam Solar Hybrid Stations,” Nangombe said.
The agreements will also see Erongo RED signing for N$20 million, NORED allocated N$30 million, while Oshakati Premier Electric (OPE) joined for the first
time as an implementing partner this year.
“They are allocated an amount of N$7 million.And in the south, //AU-OB RED, is allocated N$12 million, supported by both in-kind and financial contributions from local authorities,” he said.
Nangombe added ther ,”I am proud to announce a new service level agreement will be signed with the Environmental Investment Fund (EIF), to the tune of N$8 million for the development of a solar mini-grid in Puros Village, Kunene Region. This is a first, but it will not be the last. Because our approach is clear – we will not only be partnering with electricity distributors, we are engaging other agencies and institutions that can help move the needle forward.”
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