Power Kick for Africa

With the power of the sun: WFC World Cup public viewing in Oboadaka, Ghana

The WFC enabled football enthusiasts in the small non-electrified bush village of Oboadaka in Ghana to watch Ghana's group games at the Football World Cup on a large screen. This unusual public viewing was powered by solar energy and came in conjunction with a workshop on renewable energy policies for sustainable African development. The WFC's cooperation partner Energiebau Sunergy Ghana Ltd. has installed modern solar panels to power the public viewing and to give the village community hospital permanent and reliable electricity supply, medication cooling and modern communication facilities.

Oboadaka - This small village with a population of 1.000 people is two hours away from Ghana's capital city Accra. The village is surrounded by 26 smaller communities, counting to a total population of 6.900. There is only one shop in Oboadaka and the main source of income is the farming of pineapples. One clinic with a dedicated and motivated team serves as the health centre to the entire area. Before "Power Kick for Africa" Oboadaka did not have access to electricity, therefore the clinic facilities were of low standard.

Ghana & Football - Ghana is the current U21 FIFA World Champion and vice Africa Cup Champion 2010. Ghana's national team, the "Black Stars", are Africa's second most successful team of all time and have won the African Cup of Nations four times, in 1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982. 2010 was only the second time the "Black Stars" qualified for a FIFA World Cup - as Africa's most successful team they made it through to the quarter final where they were narrowly defeated by Uruguay.

View photos from the public viewing in Oboadaka >>

WFC Strategy Workshop

Members of AREA (African Renewable Energy Alliance, initiated by the WFC) met in Accra, Ghana, from June 21 to 23 to define and design solid energy policy frameworks for sustainable African development.

The World Future Council has initiated the African Renewable Energy Alliance (AREA), a platform for political decision makers, representatives from business and the civil society to exchange information and consult about political tools, technologies and financial resources concerning renewable energy. AREA plays a catalytic role in promoting knowledge transfer and international cooperation.

This was the second WFC / AREA workshop. In combination, the strategy workshop and the solar public pieving in Obaodaka demonstrated the power of renewable energy and celebrated the World Cup.

For more information on the workshop and its participants please download the agenda and the final report as PDF documents.

For in-depth insights you can also download the participants' presentations:

Wisdom Ahiataku-Togobo, Ghana Ministry of Energy, Progress made by Ghana on RE Project Implementation and lessons learned for AREA

Kwabena Othu-Danquah, Ghana Energy Commission, Feed‐In‐Tariff and Reduced or zero import duties and VAT exemption for Renewable Energy Technology (RET)

Kofi Agyarko, Ghana Energy Commission, Energy Efficiency Drive

Prof. Eli J. Bala, Nigerian Energy Commission, Renewable Energy Development in Nigeria

Elizabeth Thabethe, Portfolio Committee on Energy, Renewable Energy Policies in South Africa

Mahama Kappiah, ECOWAS, Challenges and Opportunities of Scaling Up Renewable Energy in West Africa

Amanda Luxande, REEEP, Insights into Clean Energy Development

Martin van Dam, Rural Energy Foundation, Facilitating access to renewable energy

Sue Edwards, Institute for Sustainable Development, Ethiopia, Indigenous Energy Resources, their potential and annual exploitation

Unleashing RE power in developing countries

In its paper "Unleashing renewable energy power in developing countries" the World Future Council proposes the introduction of a global Renewable Energy Policy Fund financed by industrialised countries. This would provide an easy-to-use, flexible and self-sustainable support mechanism for renewable energy development in developing countries. Download the paper as PDF document.

World Future Council poster – Power to the People

With the right policies in place, people in Africa can profit from creating their own renewable energy and the continent can develop sustainably. This poster shows all the benefits. Download the poster as PDF document. Also available as printed version on request.

Power Kick for Africa in cooperation with: Energy Commission of Ghana, Reeep (Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Partnership), ARE (Alliance for Rural Electrification), Energiebau Sunergy Ghana Ltd, and the Alternative Energy Africa Magazine as a media partner.