(Phoenix FM)-The Solar Industry Association Of Zambia –SIAZ- has observed that increasing Zambia’s national electricity access from the current 34.4 percent requires building more capacity among local Independent Power Producers-IPPs.
Various stakeholders are concerned that the country’s power generation sector has for a long time not seen improvement while the national energy policy of 2019 entails that the government envisions increasing rural access to electricity from the current 4.4 percent to 51 percent, and from 67.3 percent for urban areas to at least 90 percent.
But SIAZ president Matanda Mwewa says Zambia can only attain this target once the participation of the independent power producers is enhanced and supported by the implementation of the energy policy, a failure to which the projected percentages may not be attained.
Mr Mwewa is concerned that it has taken Zambia over 12 years to increase rural electricity access from 3 percent in 2010 to just 4 percent currently and the national access levels from 26 percent to 34 percent presently within the same period.
He adds that Zambia needs to do more on the implementation side by investing more in supporting local independent power producers and growing the renewable energy sector.
