All Articles

As the third-largest economy in sub-Saharan Africa, Kenya has emerged as Africa’s leading example of anti-fossil-fuel leadership. With 90% of its grid powered by renewables, Kenya’s grid is more decarbonized than those of some wealthy European nations, where renewables account for about 63%. 

In the southern Tunisian city of Gabes, a green hydrogen project is in development, aiming to transform the local energy and economic landscape. However, this initiative faces objections from residents concerned about potential environmental risks, given Gabes’ history with polluting chemical industries.

The South African public pension fund has been accomplishing this in several ways. The GEPF has invested in start-ups that add solar, wind, or biogas to South Africa’s grid, either as a sole or co-financier, since 2014.

Strive Masiyiwa, who sits on Netflix’s board , is Zimbabwe’s only billionaire but has reportedly not returned to his country of birth since 2000. However, earlier this month, he surprised market observers by announcing financing for a 300-hectare hybrid green energy and large-scale data center industrial park that will power AI and logistics operations. Startup owners are thrilled that green energy and big data infrastructure are breaking out of the Big 5 African nations (Ken

Pegasus believes emerging markets, where (as of 2025) electricity demand is expected to grow by 70% by 2050, driven by rising living standards, represents the next frontier of both climate impact and investor returns.

Startups that are not well-suited to venture capital but are hesitant to pursue debt financing can always return to a staple of early-stage financing: angel investors. In several ways, venture capital and angel investing appear similar, but their goals often differ.

Though still modest by global standards, clean tech is taking off in South Africa, and its fortunes are closely tied to the country’s booming renewable energy sector. The Energy Pioneer showcases 5 exciting clean energy tech startups driving innovation across South Africa in 2026. These include compressed air energy storage, high-performance concentrated solar technology, and an intelligence service for land regeneration.

The use cases for philanthropic capital and the available sources are crucial yet underdiscussed aspects of financing the energy transition. The word most frequently mentioned in discussions of philanthropic capital for this piece was catalyst. Whether the capital is intended to support a company as it scales up or to leverage existing technology in a new space, it should not be viewed by the recipient as an end in itself.

Africa is rich in natural resources, yet it continues to face serious challenges in renewable energy. Despite its vast renewable energy potential, the continent struggles to generate enough power to meet its population's needs. Meanwhile, critical minerals like lithium are being extracted from countries like Zimbabwe and exported to fuel the green energy revolution in the developed world, leaving many Africans wondering who is really benefiting from their resources.

The role that venture capital will play in developing early-stage clean energy technologies is likely to mirror its scale in developing AI, internet companies, and social media platforms. While many of the hallmarks of VC remain the same, including long-shot bets, radical new technologies, and high potential returns, many of the challenges are new.

South Africa’s biggest C02-emmiting firms are caught in a PR bind. They are accused of working to ‘delay, dilute or derail’ Net-Zero goals in Africa’s wealthiest economy. When confronted, they struggle with vague denials. In May, a report titled ‘The Obstruction Playbook’ reveals the sophisticated, yet subtle tactics some of South Africa’s biggest corporates deploy to frustrate the climate pledges made by the Just Energy Transition Plan committed to by South Africa in 2021.

COP30 has two weeks for parties to discuss and deliver on adaptation. As the IPCC notes, climate change is progressing more rapidly than we can adapt. With the summit starting next Monday in Brazil, it is worth recalling that the GGA framework was initially proposed by Latin America, specifically by Argentina, and later adopted by the Parties at COP28.