ENERGÍA SUCIA EN ÁFRICA

The document examines the impacts of 'dirty energy' (coal, oil, gas, nuclear, industrial biomass, mega-dams, and waste incineration) across Africa. It highlights how these technologies drive climate change, cause severe health and environmental damage, and often benefit elites and multinational corporations over local populations. The report provides case studies on coal in South Africa, oil in Nigeria and Uganda, mega-dams in Mozambique, and the risks of 'extreme energy' like fracking and bitumen extraction in the Maghreb and Nigeria. It concludes by calling for 'energy sovereignty' and a just transition to decentralized, renewable energy systems.

• Sub-Saharan Africa is the most electricity-poor region globally, with over 620 million people lacking access to electricity and nearly 730 million relying on unhealthy fuels like biomass for cooking.
• South Africa is heavily dependent on coal, which provides nearly 90% of its electricity and 77% of its primary energy needs. This reliance has led to severe health crises, with respiratory and cardiovascular diseases causing over half of all deaths in communities near power plants.
• The Maghreb region, particularly Algeria, is closely tied to European energy policies, with Algeria serving as the second largest external supplier of natural gas to Europe. In Morocco, the Ouarzazate solar plant has been criticized as 'green land grabbing' for acquiring 3,000 hectares of community and grazing lands.
• Uganda is expanding oil production with goals to start crude oil production by 2020/2021, potentially exploiting up to 6.5 billion barrels in the Albertine Graben. This threatens the region's biodiversity, as Uganda is the second most biodiverse country in Africa.
• Mega-dams in Africa, such as the proposed Mphanda Nkuwa dam in Mozambique, often fail to reduce energy poverty and instead cause mass displacement and environmental damage. The Mphanda Nkuwa project is estimated to cost over $2.3 billion and may displace 1,400 households.
• Nigeria is considering the exploitation of bitumen (oil sands), with reserves estimated at 38 billion barrels, the sixth largest in the world. This 'extreme energy' extraction is expected to cause environmental degradation similar to that seen in Canada, potentially removing all vegetation and making agriculture impossible.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (2016). ENERGÍA SUCIA EN ÁFRICA. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/DIRTY-ENERGY-IN-AFRICA-ES-FINAL.pdf

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. ENERGÍA SUCIA EN ÁFRICA. 2016. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/DIRTY-ENERGY-IN-AFRICA-ES-FINAL.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=ENERGÍA SUCIA EN ÁFRICA |date=November 2016 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/DIRTY-ENERGY-IN-AFRICA-ES-FINAL.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearthinternational2016energa, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{ENERGÍA SUCIA EN ÁFRICA}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2016}, month = nov, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/DIRTY-ENERGY-IN-AFRICA-ES-FINAL.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }