BY DAYO ADESULU
The inter-party online conference drew attention to the developments of Africa’s energy market, navigating relations on the continent for Russia-Africa partnerships and highlighting the announcement of the creation of the Russia-Africa Energy Committee aimed at developing clean power and strategic framework towards the continent’s energy crisis.
While the agenda for the United Russia Party is aimed at growing Russian presence on the continent, Presidents and delegates across Africa were able to address their countries economic challenges, technological advances, and declare a call for vaccines to be produced in Africa and distributed to the frontline workers in healthcare and energy workers working offshore, onshore and on public utilities.
“Attention needs to be focused on moving away from MOU’s with African companies to closing deals. Russia can play a great role in financing energy projects and gas development in Mozambique, Senegal, Tanzania, Nigeria and other countries. Russian companies working on training and building logistics infrastructure can be a path to building a strong local content framework that drives our energy sector” said NJ Ayuk, Executive Chairman of the African Energy Chamber.
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Russia continues to be a powerful player in the global energy market as it raised concerns on how Russia-Africa relations can create strong relationships to support an enabling environment, together with Africa’s role in implementing innovative smart power solutions for a post-COVID-19 world and ensuring a sustainable and diversified energy mix.
“We will be setting up a special Russia-Africa Energy Committee with our advisory board to focus on developing energy projects and closing deals. Many young people in Russia and Africa want results and not talk. We need to look at the mirror of the Russian-Africa relationship. We need to not only reflect what we see but correct what we see,” concluded Ayuk.
Across Africa, new systems and networks can be designed around future environmental stressors and energy demands without considering the limitations of old infrastructure. With the advanced use of mobile technology in Africa and the lack of existing electricity transmission networks, these developments allow communities in Africa to gain access to power by leapfrogging the traditional model of centralized generation and transmission of power.
