WASHINGTON (July 1, 2013) – The ONE Campaign welcomes President Obama’s Power Africa plan, which aims to double energy access in sub-Saharan Africa over the next five years.

Michael Elliott, ONE President and CEO, said:

Half a billion people in sub-Saharan Africa live without electricity. Without access to the grid, it’s nearly impossible to operate businesses, hospitals and schools effectively and extremely difficult for households to meet their basic needs.

That’s why I warmly welcome President Obama’s Power Africa plan – which commits $7 billion to increase electricity access by at least 20 million new households and businesses with on-grid, mini-grid, and off-grid solutions. If, as we hope, Power Africa acts as a catalyst to encourage yet more investment in African energy, then it’s no exaggeration to say that it may turn out to be one of the most significant of all the Administration’s initiatives, one that will have a direct impact on poverty alleviation and will encourage economic opportunity where it is needed most.

Together with the bipartisan House bill, Electrify Africa, introduced days ago by Reps. Royce (R-CA) and Engel (D-NY), Power Africa has put the vital issue of energy poverty at the heart of the international development agenda. At The ONE Campaign, we’ve been listening to Africa leaders argue for just such a step for the last two years, and we’re delighted that the leaders in the US Administration and Congress share Africans’ concerns – and are dedicated to doing something about them. For our part, we at ONE will continue to campaign for effective policy change on access to energy – something that, in more ways than one, will make the future of Africa a little brighter.

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About The ONE Campaign:

Co-founded by Bono and strictly nonpartisan, ONE is a campaigning and advocacy organization of more than three million people taking action to end extreme poverty and preventable disease… because the facts show extreme poverty has already been cut in half and can be virtually eliminated by 2030, but only if we act now.  Learn more at ONE.org.