Agency to step up rural electrification drive to beat deadline

 

Rural Electrification Authority Chairman Dr Simon Gicharu

The Rural Electrification Authority (REA) has set its sights on Kenya achieving universal access to energy goal ahead of its 2030 deadline.

REA said it was accelerating the pace of rural electrification in the country to enable the Government to beat the deadline.

REA Chairman Simon Gicharu said the authority was committed to realising the Government’s vision of increasing access to electricity for rural communities in a bid to promote sustainable socio-economic growth.

He said rural electrification had the potential to transform lives of the rural people, which had been marginalised for a long time.

"Access to electricity will increase economic activities and help fight poverty in rural areas," he said in in an interview in Mombasa at the weekend.

Dr Gicharu said REA was allocated Sh7 billion in the 2017/2018 financial year, the bulk of which would be used in scaling up the supply of renewable energy in rural areas.

"We are committing Sh2.5 billion out of the Sh7 billion to solar power and diesel generators to light up villages in remote areas," he said.