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IEA 2026: Africa's Minerals Are Rising. Its Refining Capacity Is Not.
The DRC produced two-thirds of global mined cobalt in 2025 and its export quota now drives the market into deficit. China is projected to refine 90% of battery-grade graphite in 2040. ETA reads the IEA's 2026 Outlook, mineral by mineral for what it means for Africa.
Africa Controls 30% of Critical Minerals. It Captures 5% of the Value.
Africa holds 30% of global critical mineral reserves and captures less than 5% of the value added. On 10 July 2026, two events on the same day showed why. ETA on the institutional gap between Africa's continental minerals vision and national implementation capacity.
Africa's Energy Problem Is Institutions. Bloomberg Just Bet $285 Million.
Only 2 of 54 African countries hold investment-grade ratings. Country risk explains the 56% variation in renewable energy financing costs. Bloomberg put $285m behind institutional capacity, not solar farms. Vincent Egoro on what the bet means, and the question it still hasn't answered.
Why Energy Access Alone Will Not Empower Women in Botswana
Botswana targets 50% renewable energy by 2030. Women hold 16% of BPC's 1,535 technical roles. The Off-Grid Solar Fund is not yet operational. ETA Policy Brief 003 by Mphoentle Katlo Soke on what its design must include to turn energy access into economic empowerment.
Why Is Africa's Green Jobs Boom Not Happening Yet?
Africa's green economy could create 3.3 million jobs by 2030, with 1.7 million in solar alone. Africa's renewable energy sector currently employs roughly 324,000 people. Ten million young Africans enter the labour market every year. Vincent Egoro on why the training pipeline keeps missing the target
What Happens to Solar Batteries After They Fail?
Solar batteries in sub-Saharan Africa last one to five years. When they fail, 71% are thrown into pits or bins. One informally recycled battery releases 100+ times the lethal dose of lead. ETA explains what three peer-reviewed studies have documented.
Africa's Firms Lose 5% of Their Sales to Darkness.
78% of African firms experienced outages last year. 41% name electricity their biggest constraint. Nigeria loses $26bn annually — before counting $22bn in generator fuel. Firms in sub-Saharan Africa lose 56 hours per month to power cuts. ETA quantifies the hidden industrial tax.
Renewable Energy Is Now Cheaper in Africa Than It Has Ever Been. The Report That Proves It Also Explains Why Africa Is Still Paying More Than Anyone Else.
Africa had the world's largest solar cost reduction of any region between 2015 and 2025, 76% lower installation costs 77% lower electricity costs. IRENA's 2025 report shows that country risk explains 56% of financing cost variation across markets.
Africa Is Preparing for an Energy Transition. We Are Not Preparing the People Who Must Lead It.
Mission 300 assumes capable institutions. The Twin Transition assumes governance-literate regulators. Africa's energy systems are digitising rapidly. But who is training the policymakers, energy economists, and digital regulators who must govern all of it? Vincent Egoro asks.
What South Africa Can Learn From Morocco's Industrial Strategy and Why Electricity Is the Key
Morocco scored 0.8415 on the AfDB's 2025 Africa Industrialisation Index. South Africa scored 0.8396, its first time below Morocco since 2010. Manufacturing fell from 21% to 12% of South Africa's GDP. ETA analyses what produced the divergence and what electricity has to do with it.
Africa's Solar Boom Runs on Lead. Here Is Why and What Changes When It Doesn't.
Lithium-ion dominates the global clean energy transition. Africa's off-grid solar market still relies on lead-acid batteries. ETA explains why affordability, not technology, is keeping older battery chemistry alive, and what must change before households can switch.
Africa Is Home to 86% of the World's Electricity Access Gap. The Latest SDG7 Report Explains Why.
Sub-Saharan Africa is now home to 563 million of the world's 655 million people without electricity, and the gap is becoming more concentrated. ETA Analysis examines what the 2026 SDG7 Energy Progress Report reveals about Africa's energy access challenge, and why current progress is still off track.