ROGEAP Journalists’ Network Prepares for its Second Regional Awareness-Raising Workshop

The ROGEAP Journalists’ Network is set to launch its Second Regional Information and Awareness-Raising Workshop, scheduled for 13^th to the 14th^th in March 2024 in Lomé, Togo. The Regional Off-grid Electricity Access Project (ROGEAP) is funded by the World Bank, the Clean Technology Fund and the Dutch Government’s Directorate for International Cooperation.

The project forms part of the ECOWAS programme on access to sustainable electricity services, contributing directly to the objectives of the ECOWAS Renewable Energy Policy, which aims to provide universal access to electricity in the region by 2030. The project has two main components: the development of a regional market for off-grid solar PV systems and enabling the private sector to access finance for off-grid solar PV products. 

The Lomé workshop aims to bring members of the network up to date on the activities carried out by the project since its inception; it will be chaired by the ECOWAS Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy and Digitalisation, Sediko Douka.

According to reports, of the 406 million people living in West Africa and the Sahel region, an estimated 208 million have no access to electricity, with around 70 per cent living in rural areas. The two-day event would therefore bring together members of the ROGEAP Journalists’ Network from across the 19 member states to discuss the role, missions, activities and intervention mechanisms of the Project Fund Manager (PFM) in the member states.

Participants will also discuss in detail the role, remit, activities and intervention mechanisms of the West African Development Bank in member states. The forum is also expected to finalise the document setting out a robust collaborative framework between the ROGEAP Journalists’ Network and ROGEAP’s implementing partners.

The Regional Off-grid Electricity Access Project, known as ROGEAP, established by ECOWAS in partnership with the West African Development Bank (WADB), officially commenced its activities in April 2022. The project was launched at regional level in October 2023 in Praia, Cape Verde, with the ultimate aim of improving access to electricity in the ECOWAS and Sahel regions through the use of modern, stand-alone solar technology, as part of a harmonised regional approach.