REIAoN

In Africa the case of modern energy provision is a special one. Our currencies (and incomes) are about 10 times weaker than those of the developed world, which is mainly in control of the finite resources. But we have to pay the same price if we want to use these commodities. The majority of African countries spend most of their income earned from... export on fuel imports. Many among them spend more than that, i. e. these fuel imports are partly paid from development aid monies. This often enriches small elites connected to importing and distributing fuels while leaving disastrous consequences concerning countries chances of real development. Renewable Energy (RE) on the other hand is typically harvested on home grounds and makes use of the national surface area. So it can be called an indigenous asset. Power stations built on solar and wind also have a much higher local content if compared with gas-, coal- or nuclear stations. That means not only the power station but also its operation yields huge benefits in terms of important factors like money outflow and job creation. One must therefore ask again if Namibias development based on finite fossil energy would be a sound foundation on which our long-term visions can be achieved. Our politicians talk so much about value adding when it comes to exporting products from Namibia and they rightly do so. But at times when we hit the three existential limits of the fossil based energy system depletion of fuel, climate-incompatibility and rising violence for finite resource access the added value from our own renewable energy sources is not adequately recognized. Time and again we must look at the trade-off between national energy autonomy versus larger regional power pools, the latter being based on costly power lines or other means of transport for energy. National energy autonomy based on a renewable energy scenario will assign funds for the development of rural areas and centres immediately. A power pool will require costly infrastructure before the first hut in a ...Read More