Six hundred million people across Africa still live without electricity. Three global institutions decided last week that closing that gap will not happen without the private sector sitting at the table, not just on the edges of it.
The World Bank Group, the African Development Bank and the Rockefeller Foundation launched the Mission 300 Private Sector Council on March 31, 2026, assembling 14 senior business leaders from energy, finance and technology to help drive the capital mobilization needed to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030.
Makhtar Diop, managing director of the International Finance Corporation, and Ray Chambers, chair of the MCJ Foundation, will serve as co-chairs. “This council brings exactly that, senior leaders with the networks and expertise to translate ambition into impact,” Diop said.
Who is on the council
The 14-member body includes Airtel Africa, Delta40, DLO Energy Resources Group, Elsewedy Electric, EQT Corporation, GOGLA, Meridiam, Scatec, Husk Power Systems, TotalEnergies, Standard Bank, Zhero, MCJ Amelior Foundation and Sahara Power Group.
Kola Adesina, group managing director of Sahara Power Group, is among the most prominent African private sector figures on the council. Sahara Power operates the largest privately owned power business in sub-Saharan Africa, with assets including Egbin Power, Ikeja Electric and First Independent Power Limited. “Closing Africa’s electricity gap will require strategic collaboration and sustained private investment,” Adesina said. The secretariat will be hosted by RF Catalytic Capital, the Rockefeller Foundation’s public charity, meeting quarterly.
What Mission 300 has achieved
Launched in 2024, Mission 300 has already connected 44 million people to electricity, with 30 countries signing energy compacts. IFC and MIGA have pledged $5 billion in private sector support by 2030.
Kevin Kariuki, AfDB vice president for Power, Energy, Climate and Green Growth, said private capital will cover about half of all energy compact investments. Andrew Herscowitz, CEO of the Mission 300 Accelerator, noted that half of the planned connections will come from off-grid solutions, making private investment not optional but essential. “The Mission 300 Accelerator is looking forward to working with the IFC, African Development Bank and our Private Sector Council to accelerate commercial investment and change lives,” he said.
