This country brief describes the significant role that the off-grid solar power sector could play in meeting Mozambique's universal electricity access goal and provides a structured overview of the key barriers hindering private sector participation for scaling-up the sector as well as recommendations to address the identified barriers.
The brief notes that, according to Mozambique's Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy, the country can meet its off-grid electrification needs by utilizing its enormous renewable resources, as evidenced by the thousands of identified potential project sites in areas with an off-grid population. Both solar and hydropower have significant technical potential, estimated at 23 TW and 19 GW, respectively. However, there are still some barriers that are hindering the participation of the private sector to further electricity accessibility in Mozambique. The report recommends the following strategies to address these barriers:
- Establishing an interagency mechanism on off-grid electrification;
- Expediting existing initiatives;
- Raising awareness and developing/disseminating marker knowledge; and
- Strengthening the role of off-grid infrastructure financing agency.