The launch of the Strategy for the Harmonisation of Energy Statistics in Africa by the African Energy Commission (AFREC) on June 23, 2026, marks a pivotal moment for the continent’s energy sector. This comprehensive framework is meticulously designed to strengthen the collection, coordination, and comparability of energy data across Africa.
According to AFREC, the strategy provides clear guidelines to enhance institutional capacity, align regional methodologies with international standards, and improve the reliability of energy statistics for policy, planning, and investment purposes.
Underscoring the critical nature of this initiative, Lerato Mataboge, the AU Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy, emphasizes that reliable and harmonised energy statistics are the cornerstone of sound policy and evidence-based decision-making.
“These data frameworks facilitate the design of coherent strategies by governments, assist investors in accurately assessing market opportunities, and empower regional institutions to monitor progress toward continental goals,” she noted.
In the absence of coherent and robust data, Mataboge pointed out that Africa’s aspirations for universal energy access, energy security, industrialisation, and a just energy transition will continue to be constrained.
Developed through extensive consultations with Member States, regional economic communities, international partners, and technical experts, this landmark strategy addresses the urgent challenges of fragmentation, inconsistency, and limited comparability of energy statistics.
The African Union Commission provided vital policy guidance, while international partners, including the International Energy Agency (IEA), the United Nations Statistics Division, and the African Development Bank who contributed the technical expertise necessary to ensure global alignment.
Furthermore, active participation from AU Member State representatives and Focal Point Coordinators(FPCs), who refined the draft in Entebbe, Uganda, in December 2024, ensured the strategy reflects local realities.
Rashid Abdalla, the Executive Director of AFREC, has positioned this 2026–2031 strategy as a roadmap to establish AFREC as the primary custodian of comprehensive and reliable African energy data.
“The core vision aims to foster functional and sustainable energy statistics frameworks across member nations, ultimately increasing the number of countries that regularly prepare and publish standardized energy balances,” he explained.
By harmonising methodologies, definitions, and reporting standards through unified data processing, the initiative ensures African energy data is globally recognized, strengthening the continent’s position and voice in the global energy dialogue.
The urgency of this strategy is highlighted by the stark disparities within the continent, particularly between Northern Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. While Northern Africa possesses more developed infrastructure, Sub-Saharan Africa faces severe energy challenges, with a significant portion of the population lacking electricity and relying heavily on solid biomass fuels, like firewood and charcoal, for cooking.
Paradoxically, Sub-Saharan Africa leads the world with a 69% share of final energy consumption derived from renewables compared to a global average of 19%, yet this high percentage simply reflects the absence of alternative modern energy forms. Furthermore, while some African countries derive over 70% of their electricity from renewables, this metric fails to account for the massive generation capacity still required to achieve universal energy access.
Infrastructure limitations further complicate the landscape. Africa remains the only continent that is a net exporter of crude oil and natural gas while concurrently remaining a net importer of petroleum products. Although gas production is rising in North Africa and Mozambique, infrastructure constraints severely limit continental benefits.
For instance, the entire sub-Saharan gas network spans just over 1,500 kilometres, which amounts to a mere 3% of the single gas network operated by Snam in Italy.
To overcome these hurdles, AFREC executed a comprehensive SWOT analysis to identify institutional pain points and opportunities. Currently, energy statistics are often treated as a lower priority compared to economic, agricultural, or health data. National frameworks are frequently weakened by poor coordination between ministries, informal institutional structures, and limited legal mandates.
Many statistical teams are small and lack resilience, heavily relying on a single key individual, which leaves them vulnerable to staff turnover. Consequently, only about 20 out of 55 countries currently supply a high-quality energy balance to AFREC. However, massive opportunities exist in Africa’s young, dynamic workforce, falling IT and data storage costs, and the deeply collaborative nature of African energy statisticians who are eager to share knowledge.
To capitalize on these opportunities, AFREC has outlined seven clear Strategic Aims for 2030. The first aim is to ensure most African countries establish a functional energy statistics framework by 2030, complete with formally mandated institutions, dedicated Energy Statistics Working Groups, and secured national budget lines.
The second aim targets an increase of at least three countries per year preparing and publishing international-standard energy balances. Other primary aims include implementing unified reporting questionnaires, expanding AFREC’s active facilitation, fostering peer-to-peer collaboration among statisticians, and coordinating international funding to ensure long-term, sustainable capacity building.
Achieving these aims requires a series of coordinated tactical actions across multiple stakeholders. The African Union and AFREC must actively advocate for energy statistics to elevate their profile alongside traditional economic metrics, encouraging all nations to sign the African Charter on Statistics. Nationally, energy statisticians must develop localized action plans focusing initially on energy balances and SDG 7 data, while documenting internal processes to build institutional resilience against staff turnover.
Furthermore, training will be intensely focused on building practical skills, particularly regarding estimation techniques for hard-to-measure sectors like biomass. Private energy businesses are also called upon to provide data and pressure governments for better statistics to aid commercial planning, while data users must actively provide feedback to improve overall data quality.
This strategy builds upon a solid historical foundation. A major step forward occurred in 2012 when AFREC launched the African Energy Information System (AEIS) to collect, validate, and disseminate national energy data. This was expanded by establishing a network of dedicated National Focal Points appointed by energy ministers.
In 2022, AFREC launched the program “Improving the National Energy Information System & Capacity Building,” which successfully supported eleven AU member countries in expanding their data coverage, upgrading their national systems, and aligning with the International Recommendations for Energy Statistics—a global standard developed over a decade by InterEnerStat and the Oslo City Group.
As the 2026–2031 strategy moves into its implementation phase, it addresses the remaining structural risks head-on. Focal points still struggle to capture sufficient data on biomass and energy end-uses, financial and human resources remain scarce, and the long-term sustainability of IT hardware is consistently threatened by limited maintenance budgets.
By systematically addressing these technical, financial, and institutional barriers through collective continental action, the strategy provides a definitive roadmap to transform African energy statistics, enabling evidence-based planning and driving sustainable development for the benefit of all Africans.
