Universal Electricity Access is a Prerequisite for Inclusive Development

In 2003, the proportion of the Kenyan population with access to electricity was approximately 24.5 percent, with only 6.9 percent of the country’s rural population having access to electricity.

 

By 2023, Kenya had significantly expanded electricity access, with about 75 percent of households now connected, driven by grid and off-grid renewable solutions, putting Kenya on course to achieve 100 percent universal access by 2030.

 

In line with Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7), universal access to electricity is no longer a peripheral development ambition but a core social and economic right. This principle commits countries to ensure that access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy is available to all, regardless of their location.

 

Importantly, universal access is not defined solely by grid connectivity, but also by alternatives that make it possible to power off-grid communities. This enables them to utilise basic appliances such as lights, phones, radios, TVs, and tools of production. Universal access demands that generation be through a combination of the national grid, mini-grids, or standalone systems.

 

According to the Kenya National Energy Compact (2025 to 2030), achieving universal electricity access by 2030 will require connecting about 5.1 million additional households through a mix of grid extension, mini-grids, and off-grid solutions atop. For Kenya, 2025 was a turning point with household connections reaching 10 million.

 

Globally, heavy energy investments have ensured that about 92 percent of the world’s population now have access to electricity. Sadly, nearly 650 million people or eight out of every 10 people without access to electricity globally are in Africa, a stark imbalance that reinforces the urgent need for African nations to harness locally available energy resources for public good.

 

This makes economically strategic as exhibited in other countries that treated electricity access as a development right. For instance, India and Indonesia reached universal electricity access through coordinated national programmes that combined grid expansion with off-grid solutions for remote communities.

 

Bangladesh has nearly closed its access gap, with electricity now reaching over 99 percent of its population. Tunisia and Egypt have achieved full national access with   Rwanda heavily investing in raising electricity access from just six percent in 2009 to about 75 percent by 2024. Key priority areas for connectivity include public facilities, rural households, and renewable solutions.

 

Kenya’s own journey reflects this global trajectory, having invested heavily in promoting access to electricity, where communities living in densely populated areas enjoy better access.

 

Off-grid solar, mini-grids, and battery storage technologies are being harnessed to expand electricity coverage to remote regions. One such national initiative is the Kenya Off-Grid Solar Access Project (KOSAP), implemented by the Ministry of Energy and Petroleum in partnership with the World Bank.

 

KOSAP is designed to deliver clean electricity and clean cooking solutions to over 1.5 million people across 14 underserved counties of Turkana, Marsabit, Mandera, Wajir, Garissa, Samburu, Isiolo, West Pokot, Narok, Kwale, Kilifi, Tana River, Taita Taveta, and Lamu.

 

The main approaches by the Project are the deployment of solar-powered mini-grids, standalone solar systems for public institutions, and solar home systems for individual households located far away from grid connectivity.

 

Priority has been given to public facilities such as hospitals enabling them to offer better healthcare services, schools, for longer learning hours and access to IT equipment enabling schools to introduce more subjects.

 

Within commercial centres, KOSAP is connecting administrative offices and security installations, enabling communities to access public services within their localities. Thanks to streetlighting and electricity connections, businesses enjoy longer operating hours, reduced energy costs, and improved profitability.

 

While gains made have not been quantified in economic terms, connecting communities to electricity has been found to unlock new jobs and investments, helping to curb rural-urban migration.

 

Ultimately, universal access to electricity is about dignity, opportunity, and fairness. It affirms that citizens in remote and underserved counties are entitled to the same foundations for economic participation and quality of life as those in urban centres.

 

Kenya’s challenge and opportunity is to sustain the momentum to implement and scale proven solutions while entrenching the principle that energy access is not a privilege, but a right.

 

The writer (Dr. Eng  Isaac Kiva) is the Secretary for Renewable Energy in the State Department for Energy, Ministry of Energy and Petroleum