African countries need to invest four times more in electricity than they are investing now in order to expand reliable supply to the whole continent, the International Energy Agency has warned . In its Africa Energy Outlook, the authority says the continent is experiencing a population boom that will drive a strong increase in energy demand. However, current investment rates are too low to ensure adequate access to electricity to this growing population. According to the IEA, energy demand in Africa will rise by 60 percent to some 1,320 million tons of oil equivalent by 2040. The continent’s population, meanwhile, will reach 2 billion before that year and continue growing. “We’re talking about 2.5% of GDP that should go into the power sector,” said the IEA’s Chief Energy Modeller, Laura Cozzi, as quoted by Reuters. “India’s done it over the past 20 years. China has done it. So it’s […]