• New council aims to mobilize private capital for electrification projects
• Initiative seeks to bridge gap between policy reform and bankable projects
• Over 44 million people already connected since 2024 launch

To accelerate Africa’s electrification drive, Mission 300 is placing the private sector at the center of its strategy with the creation of a dedicated leadership body.

On March 31, the World Bank, the African Development Bank, and The Rockefeller Foundation announced the launch of a private sector council tasked with boosting investment in the initiative.

The council brings together 14 executives from the energy and finance sectors. Its main role is to mobilize private capital by facilitating project structuring and speeding up investment decisions. It may also develop catalytic financing platforms, using relatively small amounts of capital—often in local currency—to unlock larger funding flows for high-impact projects.

“The launch of the Mission 300 Private Sector Council is a critical step towards unlocking the scale and speed of private investment that Africa needs to achieve the goal of Mission 300,” said Kevin Kariuki, vice president for power, energy, climate, and green growth at the African Development Bank. He noted that around 50% of the initiative’s funding is expected to come from private investors.

Makhtar Diop, managing director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and co-chair of the council, said the success of Mission 300 will depend on scaling private investment and leveraging the expertise of companies with experience in Africa’s energy sector.

Since its launch in 2024, Mission 300 says it has connected 44 million people, while nearly 600 million Africans still lack access to electricity.

Alongside the council’s creation, financial partners are increasing their commitments. The Rockefeller Foundation and the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet have mobilized more than $100 million to support project preparation, while the European Investment Bank has pledged over €1 billion for energy projects linked to the initiative.

Abdoullah Diop