Renewable electricity output in Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa: Renewable electricity output was 32.5% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Renewable electricity output in Sub-Saharan Africa, 1990–2021
Source: IEA Energy Statistics Data Browser, International Energy Agency (IEA). Measured in % of total electricity output.
Analysis
Sub-Saharan Africa recorded 32.5% for renewable electricity output in 2021. That is the highest value across all 32 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.4% on the previous year and up 34.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, renewable electricity output in Sub-Saharan Africa peaked at 32.5% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 16.6%, in 1997.
That places Sub-Saharan Africa 18th out of 47 groups with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Renewable electricity output in Sub-Saharan Africa, year by year
| Year | % of total electricity output | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 18.4% | — |
| 1991 | 19.9% | +8.1% |
| 1992 | 18.9% | -5.0% |
| 1993 | 17.9% | -5.3% |
| 1994 | 17.3% | -3.3% |
| 1995 | 17.5% | +0.9% |
| 1996 | 16.8% | -3.7% |
| 1997 | 16.6% | -1.7% |
| 1998 | 17.6% | +6.2% |
| 1999 | 18.4% | +4.8% |
| 2000 | 21.6% | +17.2% |
| 2001 | 22.8% | +5.6% |
| 2002 | 21.8% | -4.7% |
| 2003 | 21.4% | -1.4% |
| 2004 | 21.7% | +1.4% |
| 2005 | 23.5% | +8.1% |
| 2006 | 23.1% | -1.7% |
| 2007 | 22.0% | -4.8% |
| 2008 | 22.6% | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 24.2% | +7.1% |
| 2010 | 24.3% | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 24.1% | -0.7% |
| 2012 | 24.4% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 25.2% | +3.1% |
| 2014 | 25.9% | +3.0% |
| 2015 | 25.7% | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 24.9% | -3.0% |
| 2017 | 27.6% | +10.9% |
| 2018 | 29.1% | +5.4% |
| 2019 | 30.7% | +5.2% |
| 2020 | 31.7% | +3.6% |
| 2021 | 32.5% | +2.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 17.9% | 16.6% | 19.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 22.5% | 21.4% | 24.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.2% | 24.1% | 30.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.1% | 31.7% | 32.5% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Sub-Saharan Africa
More energy & mining data for Sub-Saharan Africa
- Fuel imports 23.6% (2024)
- Ores and metals imports 2.0% (2024)
- Ores and metals exports 16.1% (2024)
- Fuel exports 40.1% (2024)
- Electric power transmission and distribution losses 25.8% (2024)
- Mineral rents 2.9% (2021)
- Natural gas rents 0.5% (2021)
- Total natural resources rents 10.0% (2021)
- Alternative and nuclear energy 17.4% (2024)
- Electric power consumption 376.79 kWh per capita (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is renewable electricity output in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Renewable electricity output in Sub-Saharan Africa was 32.5% in 2021, according to IEA Energy Statistics Data Browser, International Energy Agency (IEA).
- What is the highest renewable electricity output recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 32.5% in 2021.
- What is the lowest renewable electricity output recorded in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.6% in 1997.
- How does Sub-Saharan Africa rank for renewable electricity output?
- Sub-Saharan Africa ranks 18th out of 47 groups with data for 2021.
- Is renewable electricity output rising or falling in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 34.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sub-Saharan Africa data come from?
- The figures come from IEA Energy Statistics Data Browser, International Energy Agency (IEA), published as part of Renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Renewable electricity is the share of electricity generated by renewable power plants in total electricity generated by all types of plants.