Economy
African Utility Week to Showcase Continent’s Business Openings
By Dipo Olowookere
The award-winning African Utility Week, taking place from May 16-18, 2017, in Cape Town, will showcase how the continent is coming up with innovative, home-grown solutions to its energy and water challenges and how these are creating exciting and lucrative opportunities for utilities and industry suppliers alike.
Experts from respected partners in the industry such as the World Bank, KPMG, Power Africa, Huawei, GE, Shell, SAP and leading African utilities will head up the more than 7000 power and water professionals from more than 80 countries, including 30 African nations, who will gather for African Utility Week.
But this year also kick-starts a specific focus on a new trend in the industry: namely smaller, community scale off-grid projects that are starting to make a real difference in the development of the continent.
“The power and energy landscape in Africa is undergoing significant change” says Evan Schiff, African Utility Week event director, adding that current trends include “the availability of private investment for power and energy projects, the fast development of energy storage, renewable energy is becoming cheaper, gas that is an increasingly attractive mode of power generation in Africa, and that in the next 10 years, nuclear will become an increasingly important mode of base-load power generation.”
The investment, trade and development opportunities in the sub-Saharan African electricity sector are estimated at $835 billion of capital investment, $490 billion for generation capacity and $345 billion for infrastructure.
Community scale projects are another important emerging trend in the sector. “Utility-scale developments are decreasing,” says Ahmed Jaffer, Chairman of KPMG in South Africa and the Head of Power and Utilities, “while we see a lot more of community-sized generation projects. Businesses and communities are also showing interest in becoming less dependent on the national grids.
“In rural Africa, especially, the economics of expanding the national grids do not make sense; hence there is a significant trend towards mini-grids and other off-grid solutions.”
Alongside the long-running African Utility Week, a new platform for community scale projects, Energy Revolution Africa, will be launched in May this year.
Energy Revolution Africa will provide a unique forum for solution providers to meet with the new energy purchasers such as metros and municipalities, IPPs, rural electrification project developers and large power users, including mines, commercial property developers and industrial manufacturers. The latest innovations and projects in the sectors of renewables, future technology, energy efficiency, micro/off-grid and energy storage will be showcased.
Speaker highlights at African Utility Week include Lionel Zinsou, Former Prime Minister of the Republic of Benin, member of the West African Energy Leaders Group and investment banker; Matshela Koko, Acting CEO, Eskom, South Africa; Lazarus Angbazo, President and CEO of GE Energy Connections SSA; James Stewart, Global Head of Major Projects (Power and Utilities), KPMG; Bob Lockhart, Vice President of Cyber Security of the Utilities Technology Council; Subha Nagarajan, Managing Director for Africa, Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), USA; Ambassador Tebogo Seokolo, Chairperson of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); and Lucio Monari, Sector Manager for Africa Energy Group, World Bank.
The 17th annual African Utility Week is the leading conference and trade exhibition for African power, energy and water professionals who will have the opportunity to meet over 300 suppliers of services and technology to the industry.
The expo includes a record number of country pavilions, including from Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, South Africa, China, Czech Republic, Taiwan and India.
Along with multiple side events and numerous networking functions the event also boasts a five track conference with over 300 expert speakers.
The conference programme will once again address the latest challenges, developments and opportunities in the power and water sectors: ranging from generation, T&D, metering, technology and water.
The African Utility Week expo offers an extensive technical workshop programme that are CPD accredited, free to attend, hands-on presentations that take place in defined spaces on the exhibition floor. They discuss practical, day-to-day technical topics, best practices and product solutions that businesses, large power users and utilities can implement in their daily operations.
More side events as part of the African Utility Week platform include:
African Power Finance & Investment Forum: Financiers and project owners will hear from expert speakers who will identify the key trends impacting project finance in regional energy markets with updates on and insights into market opportunities, sources of capital, financing instruments and access to project finance. A featured session on regional power integration will explore new methods of developing cross-border power projects on a PPP basis, explore the opportunities for investors, and show how regional power integration can substantially save capital investment costs.
The Gas-to-Power World Congress reflects the continuing transformation of the energy ecosystem in Africa and beyond. Gas and renewables are perfect partners to help address an array of future energy challenges, including climate change, energy security and energy finance, currently three of the world’s largest and most important challenges. The event will look at new business and investment opportunities in gas-to-power, energy infrastructure, FSRU, LPG and LNG.
The Utility CEO Forum is held as a 3-day by invitation only board meeting alongside African Utility Week, where the men and women who lead and guide Africa’s power and water sectors discuss the path of transformation. Discussions centre on areas of co-operation, development plans and the advancement of regional centres of excellence throughout Africa.
The Nuclear Power Africa Conference features expert speakers who will address the myths and realities, latest technologies, regulatory and financing challenges and the economic spin offs created by a nuclear new build programme. Nuclear stakeholders and prospective suppliers will gain first hand insights into prospects for new jobs, training programmes, and the business opportunities created by the localisation of the supply chain of a nuclear new build.
The fourth edition of the African Utility Week Power Industry Awards brings together 800 of Africa’s most renowned power and water industry professionals. The Power Industry Awards is the leading gathering to recognise, reward and celebrate the successes of Africa’s power and water sectors during 2016/17.
Africa Utilities Technology Council: Telecommunications/ICT conference track programme to be presented that will cover topics such as: IT/OT convergence, IP networks and utility telecoms network performance measures. The AUTC content will continue in three dedicated sessions – one each in the T&D, Metering and Water tracks of the main strategic conference.
Site visits – these capture practical insights and demonstrate real world case studies of innovative technology combined with a unique experience of South African hospitality. Locations include the Bokpoort CSP plant, Eskom Sterrekus substation, Biomimicry Genius of Space project in Langrug, Koeberg Nuclear Power Station, Africa’s only nuclear power plant and a tour of Cape companies that are shining examples with regards to renewable energy and efficiency including HoHotel Verde, Black River Park and Cape Brewing Company.
Apart from KPMG’s diamond sponsorship, industry stalwarts EPG, GE, Huawei, Landis+Gyr, Lucy Electric, Ontec and Shell are platinum sponsors while Aberdare Cables, Conlog, Oracle Utilities, SAP, SBS Tanks and Vodacom have already confirmed their gold sponsorships.
African Utility Week and Energy Revolution Africa is the flagship energy event organised by the multi-award winning Spintelligent, leading Cape Town-based trade exhibition and conference organiser, and part of Clarion Events Ltd, based in the UK. Other well-known energy events by Spintelligent are Future Energy Nigeria (formerly known as WAPIC), Future Energy East Africa (formerly EAPIC), Future Energy Uganda and Future Energy Central Africa. Other industry-leading events organised by Spintelligent are DRC Mining Week, Kenya Mining Week, Nigeria Mining Week, Agritech Expo Zambia, Property Buyer Show, African Real Estate & Infrastructure Summit and Eduweek.
Earlier this year, Spintelligent won four major awards at the ROAR Organiser and Exhibitor Awards, which honour excellence in the exhibition and events industry on the continent and were organised by the Association of African Exhibition Organisers (AAXO). African Utility Week won for Best Trade Exhibition 6001-12000 sqm category (joint winners with the World Travel Market).
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has called on state and local governments to account for the N10.4 trillion they received from resources generated following the removal of the petrol subsidy.
The Director-General of NECA, Mr Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, made the call on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Thursday morning, a day after the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed details of the financial impact of the federal government’s economic reforms.
Mr Oyedele had said the removal of the petrol subsidy and reforms to the foreign exchange market mobilised N15.8 trillion for the Federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
According to the minister, the federal government received N5.4 trillion of the amount, while N10.4 trillion was distributed to state and local governments through the Federation Account.
Reacting to the disclosure, Mr Oyerinde said the states and local governments should now provide details of how the funds they received were utilised.
He particularly called on state commissioners for finance to disclose the amounts their respective governments received and how the funds were spent.
“Absolutely. I think it should trickle down. The commissioners of finance in states, you come out and also say, this is how much we’ve received; this is how much we have spent,” he said on the television programme.
Mr Oyerinde compared the expected disclosure by governments to the financial reporting obligations of private businesses, where companies present audited accounts and performance reports to shareholders.
“We believe strongly that as private businesses, at the end of the year you audit your accounts, you present your scorecard to your shareholders to gauge what we have done. The Minister of Finance has led the way now, and the states also should follow,” he said.
The NECA director-general urged state governments to provide a breakdown of the funds received, the challenges encountered and how the money was deployed.
“And so this is how much we have received. These are the constraints we face, and this is how we have expended this amount. I think we should move progressively towards transparency in government,” he said.
Mr Oyerinde commended the Federal Government for publicly disclosing details of its finances, describing the presentation by the finance minister as a step towards greater transparency in public administration.
He said the level of detail provided by Mr Oyedele would enable citizens and other stakeholders to better scrutinise government spending and assess the impact of the reforms.
The NECA boss also said greater disclosure by the sub-national governments would allow citizens to engage state and local governments more constructively on the use of public funds.
“I also put citizens, and I must say this, citizens are also in a good position now to engage constructively, engage the state governments constructively, and also engage local governments constructively, because that is where development should actually start,” Mr Oyerinde said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, has said from the N15.8 trillion in subsidy savings, N5.4 trillion went to the federal government, and N10.4 trillion was shared between the 36 states and the 774 local governments of the federation between June 2023 and December 2025.
Mr Oyedele disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja while presenting the federal government’s Nigeria’s Reform Scorecard: The Benefits, Costs and Harms Prevented, an assessment of the economic reforms implemented under President Bola Tinubu.
The finance minister said the N15.8 trillion in subsidy savings was distributed through the Federation Account, rather than being retained entirely by the federal government.
According to him, the central government received N5.4 trillion, representing about 34 per cent of the total savings, the states received N6.5 trillion, or 41 per cent, and the local councils received N3.9 trillion, representing about 24 per cent.
The combined N10.4 trillion allocated to states and local governments accounted for almost two-thirds of the total subsidy savings and was nearly twice the amount received by the federal government.
Mr Oyedele clarified that the N15.8 trillion should not be understood as money accumulated in a dedicated government account labelled “subsidy savings”.
Rather, he said the impact of the reforms was reflected in increased resources available to the federation through higher revenue collections, which were subsequently shared among the three tiers of government through the Federation Account.
The minister said the federal government’s N5.4 trillion share formed only one component of the additional resources available to it during the period.
It also recorded N3.1 trillion in incremental independent revenue, mainly from remittances by government-owned entities, and obtained N11.9 trillion in incremental borrowing.
Together, the three sources provided the federal government with N20.4 trillion in incremental resources between June 2023 and December 2025.
Mr Oyedele said the distribution of the subsidy savings underscored that the reform was not designed simply to increase Federal Government revenue, as a substantial portion of the additional resources accrued to the sub-national governments.
“The reform was never introduced for revenue purposes, but to address entrenched corruption in an artificially managed fuel subsidy and foreign exchange market,” he said.
He added that the federal government subsequently deployed its additional resources, alongside funds from its existing revenue base, to meet N30.64 trillion in incremental expenditure during the period.
Of the N20.4 trillion in incremental resources available to the federal government, borrowing accounted for 58 per cent, subsidy savings for 27 per cent and other revenue for 15 per cent.
The minister said the figures provided a clearer picture of how the financial impact of the subsidy reform was distributed across the Federation, with states and local governments collectively receiving the largest share.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) Plc has expressed satisfaction with the growing participation of non-interest financial institutions in its credit risk guarantees for loans to farmers, processors, aggregators, exporters and other businesses across multiple agricultural value chains.
The chief executive of the non-bank financial institution created by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to de-risk agricultural lending in the country, Mr Sa’ad Hamidu, said non-interest lenders accounted for well over 50 per cent of the loans guaranteed by NIRSAL in the first half of 2026.
In 2025, the company guaranteed more than N100 billion to beneficiaries, and according to Mr Hamidu, this figure has already been surpassed in 2026 year-to-date.
Speaking at the AFRACA Masterclass on Inclusive Finance for Climate Resilience and Artificial Intelligence for Financial Services and Agricultural Finance in Lagos, the NIRSAL chief stated that the trend demonstrates what becomes possible when appropriate risk-sharing frameworks create sufficient confidence for different forms of capital to participate in agriculture.
“At NIRSAL, we have always maintained that agriculture, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, is not underfinanced because opportunities do not exist, but because the risks have not been sufficiently understood, measured, appropriately priced, and managed,” Mr Hamidu, represented by the agency’s Executive Director of Operations, Mr Ewaen Imohe, said.
He explained that NIRSAL’s response has been to co-develop systems and financing frameworks that bring greater structure to agricultural value chains, better define and mitigate their risks, and improve financiers’ understanding of the sector and confidence to lend.
The NIRSAL boss described the masterclass as particularly timely, noting that climate change is no longer an abstract global concern but a practical reality confronting farmers, agribusinesses and their financiers every production season across Africa.
The programme’s first major theme, Inclusive Finance for Climate Resilience, exposed participants to the concepts, tools, and approaches required to understand climate risk and develop financeable adaptation and mitigation projects.
For the second major theme, Artificial Intelligence for Financial Services and Agricultural Finance, Mr Hamidu expressed the expectation that participants would move beyond the excitement surrounding AI to examine how it can improve risk understanding, transaction assessment, and financial decision-making in agriculture.
He also pointed to opportunities for technology to complement climate finance, blended finance, grants, and other innovative mechanisms capable of expanding the financial and technical resources available to African agriculture.
On deepening AFRACA-NIRSAL collaboration, he stated that, “AFRACA, for us, is a platform for knowledge, continental exchange, and global insight. On our part, we remain a results-driven source of practical experience for AFRACA member countries.”
