A new study of the African power sector, co-sponsored by ECA and UNEP and presented today at a stakeholders meeting in Addis Ababa, says that reforms Africa had not resulted in sustainability of the sector in Africa.

The two-day meeting, which is supported by UN Department of Social and Economic Affairs (UNDESA), is being attended by energy experts from the AU, African regional economic communities (ECOWAS, SADC and COMESAA) as well as state utilities from Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Namibia, Senegal, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ghana, Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon and Burundi

The study, "Making the African Power Sector Sustainable" says the lack of sustainability is because power sector reforms in Africa were primarily designed to bridge short term generation shortfalls and enhance the financial health of state-owned power utilities.

Those reforms were never "explicitly to ensure sustainability of the power sector," the report says.

For instance, it says, while reforms led to the establishment of rural electrification funds and boards, they did not help in increasing electrification levels.

To ensure sustainability, it says, reforms have to be redesigned to ensure that access to the majority of African population – the poor – is enhanced while increasing the share of independent power producers (IPP) in renewable electricity generation.

The study identifies eight key challenges to the power sector in Africa, including increased cost, environmental objections to large-scale hydropower plants, ineffective regulatory agencies, and the shortfall in generation capacity to match growing demand.