The World Bank has approved a grant of $138 million for the Electricity Sector Strengthening and Access Project (PARSE) in the Central African Republic (CAR). The funding is intended to support an electrification project based on renewable energies, particularly through solar-powered systems.
The subsidiary of the World Bank Group, the International Development Association (IDA), will be providing $83 million in funding. The Green Climate Fund (GCF), the fund established within the UNFCCC framework, is contributing $30 million. The World Bank is adding another $25 million to these funds as “private financing”.
The objective of the PARSE project is to increase the supply and access to clean electricity services in the Central African Republic through investments in production and transmission infrastructure.
According to Han Fraeters, the World Bank Country Manager for the CAR, the project is developed on the achievements of the PURACEL (Emergency Electricity Access Project) and PASEEL (Water and Electricity Services Improvement Project). It will promote the provision of off-grid solar-powered systems for public infrastructures and agricultural purposes.
The PARSE project supports solar generation and distribution network upgrades for the integration of renewable energies. This will provide the supply and installation of five solar mini-grids in the cities of Nola, Bouar, Bossembélé, and Bangassou. With a total capacity of 10 MW, the mini-grids will serve 20,000 households in these localities.
In addition, the government has planned to strengthen the transmission network through the expansion of the Danzi solar PV power plant from 25 to 40 MWp. The construction of this solar plant facility has officially been under construction on a 10-hectare plot of land near Bangui, since June 2021.
According to the World Bank’s data, only 15.5% of the Central African population has access to electricity, out of an estimated population of nearly 5 million. The situation is even worse in the rural areas where only 2.3% of the population has access to this essential service. The country needs electrification program with substantial funding like PARSE to get out of this energy insecurity.
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