RENEWABLE ENERGY MARKET ANALYSIS

EXECUTIVESUMMARY RENEWABLEENERGYMARKETANALYSIS MANORIVERUNIONREGION RENEWABLEENERGYMARKETANALYSIS:MANORIVERUNIONREGION ©IRENA2023 Unlessotherwisestated,materialinthispublicationmaybefreelyused,shared,copied,reproduced,printedand/orstored,providedthatappropriateacknowledgementisgivenofIRENAasthesourceandcopyrightholder.Materialinthispublicationthatisattributedtothirdpartiesmaybesubjecttoseparatetermsofuseandrestrictions,andappropriatepermissionsfromthesethirdpartiesmayneedtobesecuredbeforeanyuseofsuchmaterial. ISBN:978-92-9260-551-3 CITATION:IRENA(2023),Renewableenergymarketanalysis:ManoRiverUnionregion,InternationalRenewableEnergyAgency,AbuDhabi. Availablefordownload:www.irena.org/publications Forfurtherinformationortoprovidefeedback:info@irena.org ABOUTIRENA TheInternationalRenewableEnergyAgency(IRENA)servesastheprincipalplatformforinternationalco-operation,acentreofexcellence,arepositoryofpolicy,technology,resourceandfinancialknowledge,andadriverofactiononthegroundtoadvancethetransformationoftheglobalenergysystem.Aglobalintergovernmentalorganisationestablishedin2011,IRENApromotesthewidespreadadoptionandsustainableuseofallformsofrenewableenergy,includingbioenergy,geothermal,hydropower,ocean,solarandwindenergy,inthepursuitofsustainabledevelopment,energyaccess,energysecurity,andlow-carboneconomicgrowthandprosperity. www.irena.org ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ThisreportwasauthoredundertheguidanceofRabiaFerroukhiandUteCollier(IRENA)byDivyamNagpal(IRENA),SiréDialloandJosephineEnyonamDekpor(IRENAconsultants). TheauthorsaregratefulfortheinputsprovidedbyIRENAcolleaguesKamleshDookayka,MamadouGoundiam,DialaHawila,FaranRana,DennisAkande,NazikElhassan,ImenGherboudj,SibghatUllah,AbdullahAbouAli,PaulKomor,FrancisFieldandStephanieClarke.ExternalinputsandpeerreviewfeedbackwereprovidedbyStevenPayma(RuralandRenewableEnergyAgency,Liberia);DanielDuma(StockholmEnvironmentInstitute);DialloAhmedTidiane(ManoRiverUnionSecretariat);andNopenyoDabla(AfricanDevelopmentBank).ThereportbenefitedfrominputsprovidedbyKandehYumkella(TheEnergyNexusNetwork),GeorgeGontor(MinistryofMinesandEnergy,Liberia),AlbertSaaDembadouno(RenewableEnergyDivision,HydraulicsandHydrocarbons,Guinea),JeanFrancisSempore(ECREEE),DanielSchroth(AfricanDevelopmentBank)andHudaJaffer(SELCOFoundation)duringtheconsultationmeetingconductedinJanuary2023. DISCLAIMER Thispublicationandthematerialhereinareprovided“asis”.AllreasonableprecautionshavebeentakenbyIRENAtoverifythereliabilityofthematerialinthispublication.However,neitherIRENAnoranyoftheirofficials,agents,dataorotherthird-partycontentprovidersprovidesawarrantyofanykind,eitherexpressedorimplied,andtheyacceptnoresponsibilityorliabilityforanyconsequenceofuseofthepublicationormaterialherein. TheinformationcontainedinthepublicationdoesnotnecessarilyrepresenttheviewsofIRENAorallofitsMembers.ThementionofspecificcompaniesorcertainprojectsorproductsdoesnotimplythattheyareendorsedorrecommendedbyIRENAorAfDBinpreferencetoothersofasimilarnaturethatarenotmentioned.ThedesignationsemployedandthepresentationofmaterialhereindonotimplytheexpressionofanyopiniononthepartofIRENAorAfDB,concerningthelegalstatusofanyregion,country,territory,cityorareaorofitsauthorities,orconcerningthedelimitationoffrontiersorboundaries. 2 EXECUTIVESUMMARY RENEWABLEENERGYMARKETANALYSIS MANORIVERUNIONREGION 3 EXECUTIVESUMMARY ABIDJAN,CÔTED'IVOIRE|Photo:©KonanOlivier|Shutterstock TheManoRiverUnion(MRU)regioncomprisesfourcountries–namely,Côted’Ivoire,Guinea,LiberiaandSierraLeone–withacombinedpopulationofnearly56millionasof2022.Theregionisrichinnaturalresourceswithlargemineralreserves.Theregion’seconomiesarecommodity-dependent,withexportsasasharegrossdomesticproduct(GDP)in2019-2021rangingfrom13%inSierraLeoneto20%inCôted’IvoireandLiberia,and47%inGuinea.OresandmetalsrepresentthelargestshareofmerchandiseexportsinGuinea,LiberiaandSierraLeone,whileinCôted’Ivoireagriculturalgoodsaccountforthemajorityshare.Periodsofhighcommoditypricesresultinboomperiods;however,thesehavebeenshort-livedandreversedduetoexternalshocksoverthepastdecade,includingtheEbolacrisis,theCOVID-19pandemic,andthefoodandnon-foodcommoditypriceshocksresultingfromgeopoliticaldevelopmentsin2022. TheMRUcountriesareincreasinglyfacedwiththeneedtodeviseinclusiveandresilientgrowthtrajectoriesthattackleamultitudeofsocio-economicdevelopmentpriorities,includingeconomicdiversification,povertyalleviation,jobcreationandlocalindustrydevelopment,whileaddressingfiscalchallengesandrisingclimateimpacts. Accesstosufficient,reliableandaffordableenergyisfundamentalfortheregiontomeetitssocio-economicdevelopmentgoals.Thelackofenergyaccessconstrainseconomicactivity,impactsthedeliveryofcriticalpublicservicesandplacesstrainsongovernmentbudgetsduetofuelimports.AllMRUcountriesboastabundantrenewableenergyresources.Theseresourcescouldbeharnessedtotackletheenergydeficitandsupportbroaderdevelopmentandindustrialisationgoalsbystrengtheningdomesticagricultureandindustry,aswellasbydevelopinglocalvaluechainsforenergytransitionmineralsandtechnologies