Rural Electrification, Ethiopia Villagers and Other Reports

Every week, RuralReporters.com collate reports on development issues in rural Africa and its environs.

This report includes some of our top picks from recent must-read research, interviews, blogs, and in-depth articles, carefully selected to help you keep up with global issues.

Here are some of the updates you may have missed from the previous week:

Why Ethiopia’s prime minister needs to listen to people living in rural areas

Abiy Ahmed has made a raft of radical steps since taking over as Ethiopia’s prime minister in April 2018. He has redressed some of the wrongs committed by his own party, brokered peace with Eritrea and released political prisoners. Abiy has also invited opposition political groups back into the country and overseen the reunification of a splintered Orthodox church.

Abiy’s approach is summed up by his philosophy of medemer, or inclusivity and unity. His reforms have led millions to believe that positive revolutionary change is on its way. But there’s one significant group he has yet to address: the rural majority.

More than 80% of Ethiopians live in rural villages beyond the reach of mass media. So far, they have not been included in the ongoing national conversation. Yet, they contribute significantly to the economy by providing 85% of all employment and 95% of agriculture outputs.

Nigeria kicks off 1 GW solar IPP program for rural electrification

Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency is seeking consultants to conduct feasibility studies and develop a masterplan design for the ambitious program, which aims to establish a new energy infrastructure in the state of Jigawa. The program is backed by the African Development Bank.

Why linking rural and urban areas matters for development: a Ghana case study

There’s rapid urbanisation happening across Africa. But the rural population hasn’t stopped growing. In fact, Africa is considered a rural continent – only 43% of its total population lives in cities and towns.

Often policies focus on rural areas or urban expansion. In fact, the key issue for regional development is to take into account the relationships and linkages between the two. This includes the flow of people, information, goods, and services between rural and urban areas. Vibrant local economies and regional growth depend on the interdependency between local production in rural areas, the urban market, and enterprises.

In our study, we set out to discover how these interconnections can promote local businesses in rural areas of the Ejisu-Juaben municipality outside Kumasi, Ghana’s second largest city. We found that people living in rural areas were attempting to diversify their livelihoods through agro-processing, manufacturing, and services. But poor infrastructure limited their ability to link to the urban center. This, in turn, held back the area’s economic development.

Report: Nigerian Villages Can Pay for Power from Mini Grids

A new report on the potential for mini grid electricity deployment in rural communities in Nigeria, has disclosed that majority of villages in the country can afford to pay for electricity supplied to them from mini grid power systems.

The report titled: ‘Mini grid Investment Report: Scaling the Nigerian Market,” focused on opportunities in mini grid systems – stand-alone power generation and distribution systems that provide electricity to multiple customers – to address rural electrification needs of Nigerian.

Bane of rural youth in agriculture

Rural young people are a great resource for local agricultural development, yet little is done to harness their potential. So despite the huge arable land in rural areas, coupled with the opportunities that the agriculture sector presents in these areas, rural young people are migrating to urban areas in pursuit of ‘unexisting’ jobs.

Rural young people are the future of food security, yet around the world, few young people see a future for themselves in agriculture or rural areas.

In Ghana, there is compelling evidence of ageing farmer population which when not addressed, will threaten sustainability in agricultural production and development.

Uganda is ‘world’s most active nation’

So what is Uganda getting right?

People in rural Uganda, where most of the population lives, are very active on their farms, says the BBC’s Patience Atuhaire.

But, she says, in urban areas people are becoming more sedentary, especially as they get wealthier.