Access to electricity (% of population) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries): Access to electricity (% of population) was 55.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), 1996–2024
Source: SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank (WB). Measured in % of population.
Analysis
In 2024, access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) stood at 55.1%. That is the highest value across all 29 years on record.
The figure is up 3.5% on the previous year and up 43.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) peaked at 55.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 25.7%, in 2000.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) 41st out of 47 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 29 years of available data.
Access to electricity (% of population) in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries), year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 28.5% | — |
| 1997 | 28.4% | -0.5% |
| 1998 | 28.6% | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 30.1% | +5.5% |
| 2000 | 25.7% | -14.7% |
| 2001 | 26.2% | +1.8% |
| 2002 | 27.3% | +4.5% |
| 2003 | 29.6% | +8.3% |
| 2004 | 29.4% | -0.8% |
| 2005 | 29.4% | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 31.2% | +6.3% |
| 2007 | 32.5% | +4.2% |
| 2008 | 32.4% | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 32.6% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 33.3% | +2.2% |
| 2011 | 35.9% | +7.7% |
| 2012 | 36.8% | +2.4% |
| 2013 | 38.0% | +3.4% |
| 2014 | 38.4% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 39.2% | +2.2% |
| 2016 | 43.8% | +11.8% |
| 2017 | 43.8% | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 46.4% | +6.1% |
| 2019 | 47.2% | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 48.5% | +2.9% |
| 2021 | 50.7% | +4.4% |
| 2022 | 51.5% | +1.7% |
| 2023 | 53.3% | +3.4% |
| 2024 | 55.1% | +3.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 28.9% | 28.4% | 30.1% | 4 |
| 2000s | 29.6% | 25.7% | 32.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 40.3% | 33.3% | 47.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.8% | 48.5% | 55.1% | 5 |
More energy & mining data for Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)
- Ores and metals imports 2.0% (2024)
- Electricity production from oil, gas and coal sources 41.8% (2023)
- Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding 17.87 kWh per person (2021)
- Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding 0.01 kWh per US$ of GDP (2021)
- Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding 895.81 kWh per square kilometre (2021)
- Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding 20.35 % change on previous year (2021)
Frequently asked questions
- What is access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) was 55.1% in 2024, according to SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank (WB).
- What is the highest access to electricity recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The highest recorded value was 55.1% in 2024.
- What is the lowest access to electricity recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.7% in 2000.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) rank for access to electricity?
- Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) ranks 41st out of 47 groups with data for 2024.
- Is access to electricity rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 43.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries) data come from?
- The figures come from SDG 7.1.1 Electrification Dataset, World Bank (WB), published as part of Access to electricity (% of population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 29 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Access to electricity is the percentage of population with access to electricity. Electrification data are collected from industry, national surveys and international sources.