Justin Loongo, the chief executive of Zesco
Energy leaders convened in Lusaka this week for a high-level meeting of the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP), bringing the future of the region’s electricity systems firmly into focus.
Against a backdrop of rising power demand, ageing infrastructure and intensifying climate pressures, delegates emphasised the urgent need to strengthen cross-border transmission and distribution networks while accelerating investment in diverse and resilient energy sources.
The discussions highlighted how regional cooperation could help stabilise electricity supply across member states, as climate change continues to disrupt traditional hydropower generation and strain national grids.
Participants called for coordinated planning, expanded regional interconnectors and greater private sector participation to support a more flexible power system, capable of integrating renewable energy while ensuring reliable electricity for households and industries.
The meeting brought together 350 delegates from 17 power utilities from the 12-member SAPP, which was created by the SADC in 1995.
“As we reflect on the achievements of the past three decades, we must also recognise that the region now stands at a critical juncture,” Justin Loongo, the chief executive of Zambia’s state power utility, Zesco, told the meeting.
“Across Southern Africa, demand for electricity continues to grow at a rapid pace, driven by industrial development, population growth and expanding economic activity,” he said.
Power utilities in the region have increasingly embraced collaboration rather than operating in isolation, recognising that powering their countries requires closer coordination, cross-border power trading and joint planning.
The private sector wants SAPP to play a leading role in helping distribute power resources from surplus systems to deficit markets to power industrial activity by tapping into the region’s vast energy resources that include solar, hydro, geothermal and emerging gas potential.
“Some systems have surplus potential while others face persistent deficits,” said Padmore Muleya, the board chairperson of Kanona Power, which is developing the $100 million Zambia-Tanzania Interconnector. “The power pool exists precisely to bridge this imbalance.”
Muleya noted that stronger regional interconnections are essential to meeting rising electricity demand driven by expanding mining activity in Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe and the rest of the region.
Governments want utilities to prioritise stronger transmission networks and diversify power sources to ensure affordable electricity reaches citizens across the region.
“As governments, we challenge SAPP to embrace off-grid solutions that are grid-ready to allow seamless integration into national grids in the future,” said Zambia’s Minister of Energy, Makoze Chikote.
The Lusaka discussions feed into the broader continental ambition to expand electricity access to 300 million Africans by 2030 under the World Bank and African Development Bank–supported Mission 300 initiative, which aims to accelerate investment and regional cooperation to close Africa’s energy access gap.
According to data shared at the meeting, SAPP has contributed to reducing energy poverty, with average national access to electricity increasing from 23.9% in 2018 to 29% in 2024.
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