SADC member states have been urged to transition from being energy-deficient to a surplus position by decisively ending the worrying tendency of exporting raw materials and instead becoming a value-adding industrial hub within the clean energy value chain.
Vice President Dr Constantino Chiwenga made the call yesterday when he officially opened the 2026 SADC Sustainable Energy Week in Victoria Falls, urging the region to seize opportunities presented by the rapidly changing global energy landscape.
The week-long event, themed “Driving Regional Economic Growth through Clean Energy and Energy Efficiency”, seeks to catalyse a transformative shift in how the continent approaches energy production and consumption.
VP Chiwenga commended recent advancements, pointing to a newly signed Memorandum of Understanding involving the African Union (AU) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Nuclear Energy Agency, aimed at harnessing nuclear science and technology for socio-economic development.
He described this as a “strategic opportunity” for Southern Africa to build regulatory competence and human capital, establish value chains, and foster collaboration.
He noted that with Zimbabwe’s electricity access currently at approximately 62 percent, and rural access at a mere 20 percent, the urgency for action is palpable.
“However, the question before us is whether Africa will remain an extraction zone, a raw material supplier, or a value-adding industrial hub in the clean energy value chain,” said VP Chiwenga.
“In that regard, allow me to highlight the recent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to promote the peaceful application of nuclear science and technology to advance Africa’s socio-economic development by the African Union, the African Commission on Nuclear Energy and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Nuclear Energy Agency.”
“This presents a strategic opportunity for Southern Africa to build regulatory competence, human capital, value chains and regional collaboration frameworks to leverage peaceful nuclear technologies responsibly and strategically in support of Africa’s energy transition and industrialisation agenda.-herald
