Renewable Energy: A National Priority

Renewable energy is reliable and plentiful and will potentially be very cheap once technology and infrastructure improve.

It includes solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower and tidal energy, plus biofuels that are grown and harvested without fossil fuels. Non-renewable energy, such as coal and petroleum, require costly explorations and potentially dangerous mining and drilling, and they will become more expensive as supplies dwindle and demand increases. Renewable energy produces only minute levels of carbon emissions and therefore helps combat climate change caused by fossil fuel usage.

In Djibouti, the renewable energy sector is acknowledged as a national priority and plays a significant role in Djibouti’s strategy for economic development. The country’s energy policy aims principally to expand and reduce dependence on imported oil products, increasing the share of renewable energy and biofuels to make Djibouti the first African nation using 100% green energy.

With momentous renewable energy potential, including geothermal, wind and solar, the Djibouti government is looking to upsurge the share of renewables in the country’s energy mix in a bid to lower domestic energy production costs and eventually increase energy security. The country’s long-term development plan, launched in 2014 and known as Vision 2035, visualizes a full transition from 100% fossil thermal energy in 2010 to 100% renewable sources by 2020. The sector is already enticing significant interest from international investors and donors alike and a series of projects in geothermal, wind and solar energy promise to restructure Djibouti’s energy landscape in the medium term.

REACHING ITS GOAL

A major study on the potential of reducing electricity costs and the politics of energy access has been achieved. This study makes several recommendations, including the need to reform the sector and establishing within the Ministry of Energy - a Department of Rural Electricity Management.