KarunaNews Story

Solar pickup is happening at scale in many countries in Africa, with panel imports rising by 60% in the past 12 months, says the energy think-tank Ember. Twenty countries set a new record for imports in the 12 months to June 2025 and 25 countries imported at least 100MW, up from 15. These solar panels will add more than 5% to total reported electricity generation in 16 countries and reduce fuel imports. In nine of the top 10 solar panel importers, the import value of refined petroleum eclipses the value of solar panels by between 30 to 107. While solar has helped improve lives across Africa for more than two decades, South Africa and Egypt are currently the only countries with installed solar capacity measured in gigawatts, rather than megawatts.“This report is a call to action, urging stronger research, analysis and reporting on solar’s rise – to ensure the world’s cheapest electricity source, fulfills its vast potential to transform the African continent,” said chief analyst Dave Jones.