Renewable Energy Sources: The Experience of African Countries

For the countries of North Africa, as well as for the world as a whole, the problem of using renewable energy sources (RES) to stabilize economy and reduce climate threats is becoming relevant. The purpose of the article is to analyze the experience of North African countries in the field of RES from the perspective of progress in the socioeconomic and climatic spheres. The article substantiates the relationship between the use of “green” energy resources and the production of appropriate energy, macroeconomic indicators, and the climatic situation in Africa. A number of factors reinforce the need for the development of RES in Africa, including the tasks for stabilizing the economy, population growth, urbanization, climate change and – from 2022 – attempts to diversify energy sources by Western European countries. In North Africa, which has its own hydrocarbon resources, the situation in the energy sector is more favorable than in the world and sub-Saharan Africa. In the last decade, the production of total renewable energy in Africa, according to the IEA, has increased, while GDP production, according to UNCTAD, has decreased. The climate situation has not improved either. The authors conclude that the agenda for the development of RES in Africa should be comprehensively linked to other components of development, such as the circulation economy, the economy of shared consumption, digitalization and training.

Africa, North Africa, socio-economic development, climate agenda, renewable energy sources, energy consumption, traditional energy, energy efficiency