An initiative to provide electricity to communities in Africa has been impacted by recent aid cuts initiated by the Trump administration.
- The Power Africa project has been impacted by aid cuts initiated by the Trump administration
- The project, launched by former President Barack Obama, aimed to double access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa
- The termination of the initiative could slow efforts to expand power generation in sub-Saharan Africa
The Power Africa project aimed to boost electricity, was overseen by the now-defunct U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Reuters, citing Bloomberg sources, reports that while some programs—particularly those focused on connecting projects with U.S. companies—may continue under other U.S. agencies, the majority of Power Africa’s programs have been marked for termination, with most of its staff laid off.
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The Power Africa project
Power Africa was launched by former President Barack Obama in 2013 as an innovative partnership to double access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, where over 600 million people lack access.
Initially, the goal was to increase access to electricity, but during the launch, Obama tripled the goals, aiming to add 30,000 megawatts of new, cleaner electricity generation capacity and increase electricity access by at least 60 million new connections.
Power Africa operated under the now defunct U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and made significant progress, with transactions expected to generate over 4,100 megawatts of new power generation throughout sub-Saharan Africa.
The initiative also mobilized over $20 billion in private sector commitments to invest in power generation and distribution.
Trump’s move to regulate govt spending
Since his inauguration, Donald Trump has implemented various cost-cutting measures in governance, focusing on reducing federal regulations, foreign aid, and government workforce expenses.
His administration enforced a hiring freeze, downsized agencies like USAID, and withdrew from costly international agreements to minimize spending.
While prioritizing military funding, Trump’s policies aimed to streamline government operations and reduce financial burdens on the U.S. economy.
A spokesperson for the department told Bloomberg that “Each program is undergoing a review with the goal of restructuring assistance to serve U.S. interests.”
“Programs that serve our nation’s interests will continue. However, programs that aren’t aligned with our national interest will not,” the spokesperson added.
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Reuters further reports that an email sent to the U.S. State Department requesting comment was not immediately answered.
The termination of the initiative, which provided technical and legal expertise while facilitating private sector and government collaborations, could slow efforts to expand power generation in sub-Saharan Africa, where nearly half of the region’s 1.3 billion people lack access to electricity.
