The National Planning Commission of Namibia, together with the MME, Northern Regional Electricity Distributor (NORED), and the German development bank KfW, have signed a grant agreement for EUR7.5 million.
The KfW grant aims to increase access to electricity for households, and small and medium enterprises in Namibia under the Access-to-Energy Project. These funds supplement MME’s budget allocation for the electrification of Namibia and are intended for peri-urban on-grid and rural remote off-grid electrification, mainly in north-east and northwest locations of Namibia. The Access-to-Energy Project plan outlines the installation of close to 4,000 connections, providing energy access for an estimated 18,000 to 20,000 people, as well as productive users. Project preparation included technical, environmental, economic, and developmental assessments, as well as extensive stakeholder engagement to identify the most suitable locations. NORED is responsible for overall project implementation and will partly engage service providers for the roll-out. The success of the grant programme will be measured by various indicators, including the installation of at least 2,910 new on-grid connections, 990 new off-grid connections, and 400 kW off-grid power capacities for mini-grids based on solar PV plus storage. Project completion is expected by the end of 2026.