Somalia forum spotlights energy access and renewable transition progress
Somalia’s energy moment: private grit, solar hope and the hard work ahead
MOGADISHU — When Somalia’s 4th Success Stories Forum wrapped on a warm October afternoon, the optimism in the room felt brutally practical rather than triumphant. Government ministers applauded Somali-owned electricity firms for keeping lights on in the capital. A telecom giant announced that nearly all of its facilities now run on solar. And business leaders urged deeper investment to wean the country off imported diesel.
- Advertisement -
Those notes of pride, delivered in a city still scarred by decades of conflict, capture a broader shift across much of fragile and post-conflict Africa: energy access is increasingly being advanced not by sprawling state utilities but by nimble local entrepreneurs, telecom companies and small-scale renewable projects. But as Mogadishu’s policymakers made clear, getting from bespoke, generator-driven supply to a modern, affordable, climate-friendly system will mean confronting finance, governance and security challenges head on.
Private sector fills a yawning gap
Somalia still lacks a national power grid. Instead, private suppliers — many family-owned — stitch together supply with diesel generators and, increasingly, solar panels. That reality makes the stakes of every kilowatt political and personal. “Bringing the average price of electricity in Mogadishu to $0.36 per kilowatt-hour has taken effort, knowledge, and capital,” Deputy Prime Minister Salah Ahmed Jama told the forum, praising local firms that deliver 24-hour power despite high operating costs.
For consumers, that price is a daily calculation: can a shopkeeper afford a refrigerator that would preserve food and open new income streams? Can a clinic pay to run a vaccine refrigerator around the clock? In a country where roughly half the population reportedly lacks access to electricity, these are not abstract policy goals but questions that shape livelihoods.
Telecoms as unexpected energy champions
One of the most striking developments is the role telecoms are playing. Hormuud Telecom — which organised the forum — said 90 percent of its sites are now solar-powered. Across Africa, telecom companies have long been first adopters of off-grid solar to keep cell towers running; some have leveraged that experience to expand into mini-grids, power-as-a-service for businesses, and even household solar financing.
“We have chosen to harness the natural resources that God has blessed us with,” Hormuud’s chairman Ahmed Mahmoud Yusuf said, framing the pivot to renewables in both practical and cultural terms. Where governance capacity is thin and grid extension slow, private investments like these can deliver immediate benefits — but they also raise questions about regulation, equity and long-term planning.
Promises, perils and policy choices
Energy and Water Resources Minister Abdullahi Bidhaan laid out an ambitious target: cut dependence on imported fuel — now reportedly generating 85 percent of Somalia’s electricity — to 50 percent within three years, with the rest supplied by solar. It’s a bold timetable that will test the country’s nascent institutions and investor appetite.
There are clear potential wins. Expanding clean cooking solutions and gas distribution, as Somali Chamber of Commerce chair Mohamud Abdikarim Gabeyre highlighted, can reduce pressure on forests and ease domestic burdens most acutely felt by women, who typically shoulder the work of collecting fuel and cooking for families. Replacing charcoal stoves with gas or electric cooking can improve indoor air quality and reduce respiratory illness, a public health gain that is often overlooked in energy debates.
But the route to those gains is littered with familiar pitfalls. Somalia is exploring domestic oil reserves, and the petroleum minister defended efforts to increase energy security by tapping local resources. That calculus — balancing the immediate relief of cheaper fuel against the long-term climate agenda and the risks of a resource-dependent economy — is playing out across many developing countries.
Financing and regulation are the bottlenecks
Investors want certainty. They want transparent regulatory frameworks, clear tariffs, grid codes and protections for consumers. In fragile settings, where governance can be inconsistent and security risks remain, securing long-term financing for grid modernization is especially difficult. Public-private partnerships are a promising vehicle, but they depend on careful, enforceable contracts and safeguards against corruption and political interference.
The forum’s final note — a call for stronger public-private partnerships — was therefore more than ceremonial. It was a recognition that millions of Somalis stand to gain if private ingenuity can be matched with public oversight and strategic long-term planning.
Lessons from elsewhere, and tough choices ahead
In many parts of Africa and Asia, decentralized renewable systems have leapfrogged slow-moving grids, powering homes, clinics and small businesses with rooftop and mini-grid systems. But scaling those models up requires not just hardware and entrepreneurial spirit, but subsidies, smart tariffs and consumer financing that keep electricity affordable for the poorest.
Somalia’s path raises hard questions: Can a country without a national grid build one in a way that attracts capital and protects consumers? How will policymakers balance exploration for oil with climate commitments and the global shift toward renewables? And who will ensure that the benefits of cleaner, cheaper energy reach women, rural communities and small businesses, not only urban elites?
The forum in Mogadishu showed that answers are being sought, not merely hoped for. Private companies are deploying solar arrays, gas distributors are replacing charcoal in kitchens, and the government has set targets. That combination — state direction, private delivery, and citizen demand — has driven energy transitions elsewhere. But in Somalia, the levers are fragile and the timeline tight.
For international donors, investors and Somali policymakers the imperative is the same: convert this moment of pragmatic optimism into durable institutions, transparent deals and equitable access. If they succeed, Somalia could offer a model for other fragile states: energy systems that are local, clean and resilient. If they fail, the country will face a familiar cycle of ad hoc fixes, expensive imports and missed opportunity.
Which path will Somalia choose? The lights flickering on in Mogadishu’s neighborhoods suggest an answer is brewing — but delivering a modern, affordable and sustainable power system will take more than goodwill. It will take governance, finance and a willingness to put long-term national interest ahead of short-term gains.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.