Story by Owen Mandovha
COLLABORATION between Government and the private sector is key in promoting and increasing energy generation to drive the country’s industrialisation.
Zimbabwe’s drive to strengthen its energy security took centre stage at the Zimbabwe Conference where government leaders, regulators, industry experts, investors and development partners took time to discuss practical solutions towards expanding energy access, attracting investment and accelerating the country’s energy transition.
“The Ministry has made some commendable progress to eradicate factors that affected investment into the sector, and we have come up with a tariff framework which has promoted the effective roll out of projects; hence, Government must work with the private sector to increase generation capacity,” Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Energy and Power Development, Engineer Gloria Magombo said.
The banking sector plays a critical role in financing energy projects, and the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe underscored the need for banks to fund renewables.
“Financing is key to support these projects; hence, it is of paramount importance that banks offer flexible financing mechanisms to support these projects,” Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, Dr Innocent Matshe said.
“Africa is largely driven backwards by lack of energy, and it is important to increase generation to support economies, and as the EFFA, we are spearheading the promotion of renewables as a panacea to energy challenges,” Chief Executive Officer, Energy Forum for Africa, Engineer Hope Chanda said.
“We are rallying the private sector to take part in the conference and explore credible ways to end energy poverty,” Senior Partner, Absolom and Shepherd Attorneys, Mr Simbarashe Murondoti said.
Zimbabwe has set a target to increase its installed capacity to 5 000 megawatts to support its growing economy, with renewable energy being identified as a solution to achieve this target.
The conference also served as a platform for fostering dialogue, strengthening partnerships and exploring the policy and regulatory reforms needed to unlock sustainable energy development and power economic growth in Zimbabwe.
