The G20 Technical Working Group, a G20 body of technical experts and policymakers, has affirmed that every country has the right to pursue its own version of a just energy transition – one that prioritizes its people and development pathways, according to South Africa’s Minister of Energy and Electricity, Kgosientsho Ramokgopa.
Speaking at the G20 Africa Energy Investment Forum – organized by the African Energy Chamber – the Minister said global financiers and current climate-related energy policies hinder an inclusive and equitable energy transition. As a result, the G20 Technical Working Group has reached a conclusion that aligning energy-poverty eradication efforts with national development priorities is essential for African countries.
“Africa’s full potential will remain unrealized until energy is both affordable and accessible,” he said. “The energy transition is not a political debate – it is a fight for dignity. We cannot be held back by financial systems and infrastructure that do not serve us. No African child must be born on the wrong side of a transmission line, destined for darkness.”
He added that Africa must correct the historic imbalance that has treated access to energy as a privilege rather than a right.
“Brazil alone has more transmission lines than 38 African countries combined – a stark symbol of inequality. Without transmission, there is no access. If we cannot move electrons across borders, we cannot power development,” he stated.
Highlighting continental initiatives to advance a just and integrated transition, Ramokgopa pointed to Africa’s Ten-Year Infrastructure Development Plan as a blueprint for a unified energy network.
“This plan transforms isolated grids into a continental powerhouse,” he said.
Ramokgopa also highlighted the role of Africa’s mineral resources in driving the global energy transition, stating “Without Africa’s critical minerals, there are no batteries, no green hydrogen, and no global transition. History shows that resources without power create dependency, and minerals exported without value addition create poverty. We must ensure our resources fuel African manufacturing.”
With Africa needing between $90 billion and $120 billion annually in transmission investments to achieve energy reliability, the Minister urged global investors to engage the continent not through aid, but through partnership.
