{"id":14836,"date":"2026-03-02T09:33:06","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T09:33:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adfi-ci.org\/?p=14836"},"modified":"2026-03-02T14:56:59","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T14:56:59","slug":"uganda-must-build-the-light-before-transitioning-expert-urges-against-symbolic-renewables","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adfi-ci.org\/fr\/uganda-must-build-the-light-before-transitioning-expert-urges-against-symbolic-renewables\/","title":{"rendered":"Uganda Must Build the Light Before Transitioning: Expert urges against symbolic renewables"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Independent<\/a>\u00a0| February 27, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ahsard Rab shares a light moment with Uganda Development Bank\u2019s CEO, Patricia Ojangole<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |<\/strong>\u00a0One of the leading European sustainability experts, Arshad Rab, has stated that Uganda cannot follow the conventional \u201cenergy transition\u201d path of developed nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rab, the CEO of the European Organization for Sustainable Development, argued that the global narrative of \u201ctransitioning from fossil fuels to clean energy\u201d does not reflect Uganda\u2019s reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Delivering a keynote address at Uganda Development Bank\u2019s Reshaping Industries for a Sustainable Economy (RISE) platform in Kampala, Rab argued that the global narrative of \u201ctransitioning from fossil fuels to clean energy\u201d does not reflect Uganda\u2019s reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJust imagine a mother cooking dinner over charcoal in a village with no electricity. There is no grid to transition from, no coal plant to retire, only darkness after sunset,\u201d he said. \u201cUganda is not transitioning from energy abundance. It is emerging from energy scarcity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He cautioned that focusing on the language of energy transition often misdirects funds toward pilot renewables, consultancy-heavy programs, and symbolic projects, while the country\u2019s fundamental energy gaps remain unresolved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen terminology is misplaced, priorities are misplaced, and ultimately funds are misplaced,\u201d he noted. He called for \u201cenergy expansion with intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The RISE initiative, he explained, is designed to build systems that power industrialization, agriculture, and small enterprises, rather than simply meeting climate compliance goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He seemed uncomfortable with the steps that Uganda has so far taken to transition to a low-carbon future. Uganda\u2019s Energy Transition Plan, which was launched in 2023, lays out a roadmap for Uganda to sustainably develop its energy sector, meet its climate targets, deliver universal energy access, and realise widespread economic benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It sets out an ambitious yet feasible pathway to achieve universal energy access by the end of the decade and a peak in emissions by 2040. The Energy Transition Plan sees solar power as the leading source of low-cost generation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The analysis, carried out with the support of the International Energy Agency (IEA), shows that implementing this plan would allow Uganda to meet its Nationally Determined Contribution to the Paris Agreement in 2030 and be in a position to reach net zero emissions from its energy sector by 2065.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Rab, who is also the Chairperson of the International Sustainability Council, noted that \u201cDeveloping countries like Uganda are uniquely positioned to build low-carbon systems intelligently from scratch,\u201d Rab said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He challenged the international framing of energy strategies in Uganda. \u201cThe term energy transition was born in developed economies,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt describes the shift of mature, fossil-fuel-based systems, coal plants-built decades ago, gas pipelines spanning countries and continents, transport networks powered by petroleum, toward cleaner alternatives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said in those contexts, the term Energy Transition makes sense because developed countries are replacing one dominant huge system with another that is 100% organic, with no toxic chemicals. For Uganda, he said, it is fundamentally different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are not transitioning from energy abundance; we are emerging from energy scarcity.\u201d At the conference taking place at the Sheraton Hotel in Kampala, it was repeatedly noted that nearly half of Uganda\u2019s population still lacks reliable electricity access, and many rely on biomass for cooking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He remarked that Industrial growth in Uganda is constrained not by over-dependence on fossil fuels, but by the absence of consistent and affordable power. And yet, he said, energy transition continues to appear in national strategies, shape financing frameworks, and guide global investment flows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen terminology is misplaced, priorities are misplaced, and ultimately funds are misplaced,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAttention shifts toward global carbon narratives while local access gaps remain unresolved.\u201d He highlighted the consequences of this misalignment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRenewable pilot projects are launched without an operating model that works. Ambitious roadmaps are published while industries continue to rely on diesel generators or suffer from the absence of affordable and reliable energy. This is not a failure of technology. It is a failure of framing. Because when a problem is defined incorrectly, solutions follow the wrong logic.\u201d Rab contrasted the challenges facing industrialized nations with those facing Uganda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIndustrialized nations must transition. They built energy-intensive economies over more than a century. They now face the gigantic challenge of decarbonizing them. But countries like Uganda face a different mandate. It isn\u2019t transition; they need expansion. Expansion that is clean, yes. Expansion that is climate-conscious, yes. But expansion nonetheless.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He stressed that priorities for Uganda are clear: universal electricity access, industrial competitiveness, affordable tariffs, productive use of power, and economic transformation. \u201cOne cannot transition away from darkness without first switching on the light,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The centrepiece of his address was the RISE initiative, which he described as a framework for \u201cenergy expansion with intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reshaping Industries for a Sustainable Economy (RISE) is an initiative of Uganda Development Bank. The platform enables financial institutions to create demand for sustainable finance by turning key societal, economic, and environmental challenges into transformational business opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike traditional approaches that chase trends or comply with international buzzwords, RISE begins with diagnosis: what kind of energy system does Uganda need to industrialize, to compete, and to prosper? \u201cRISE does not begin with trendy terminology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It begins with asking the fundamental question: how do we build a system that powers industries, agriculture, small enterprises, and digital infrastructure?\u201d he explained. \u201cIt does not treat energy as a climate compliance exercise. It treats it as economic infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He painted a vivid picture of the consequences of misplaced priorities. \u201cInternational funding tied to energy transition goals often channels resources toward pilot renewables with no economic basis. Funds flow toward consultancy studies, reporting frameworks, and grant cycles, completely detached from baseload generation or industrial energy infrastructure. The nation pays for something it doesn\u2019t need because it doesn\u2019t even possess the kind of energy infrastructure that can be transitioned. Repeated often enough, the phrase \u2018energy transition\u2019 acquires moral authority. It becomes unquestioned. And when language becomes unquestioned, critical examination disappears.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He suggested that Uganda should stop measuring success by alignment with global terminology and focus on domestic productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe fundamental question is diluted completely: how do we build an energy system that powers us?\u201d he asked. \u201cHow do we build an energy system that powers industrialization, creates jobs, supports agriculture, fuels small enterprises, and raises incomes?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uganda, he argued, has a unique opportunity. Unlike industrialized nations, it is not burdened by legacy fossil fuel infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDeveloping countries are uniquely positioned to build low-carbon systems from the outset precisely because they are not locked into old, polluting infrastructure,\u201d he said. But realizing this potential requires honest diagnosis and deliberate design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou cannot prescribe the same remedy to two patients with different diagnoses. A fully developed economy must decarbonize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Uganda must nourish, must be nourished,\u201d he said, invoking a metaphor that drew laughter and nods from the audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In practical terms, RISE aims to integrate generation, transmission, storage, and industrial load planning into coordinated, scalable programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEnergy expansion is approached through scattered interventions, and capital becomes cautious. Tariffs remain high. Industry remains constrained. But if energy development is structured as a national pipeline, capital engages. Scale is the magnet for investment. Investors do not move toward isolated assets. They move toward systems,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He was particularly critical of projects that anchor pricing to survival energy, such as charcoal or wood, rather than industrial competitiveness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe objective is not to compete with subsistence energy use. The objective is to deliver affordable, scalable power that drives productivity. When pricing is anchored to the cost of burning wood rather than to the requirements of industrial competitiveness, ambition shrinks. Projects remain limited in scale because they are expensive. But why are they expensive? Because they are structured as isolated assets rather than integrated systems.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He emphasized the importance of scale and structure in transforming Uganda\u2019s energy sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSmall projects are expensive by design; they lack purchasing power, cannot distribute fixed costs efficiently, and struggle to attract long-term capital. But when generation, transmission, and demand are aggregated, unit costs fall, procurement strengthens, financing terms improve, risk spreads across larger portfolios, and investor confidence increases,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cElectrification is not a peripheral development goal. It is the backbone of industrialization. It is the oxygen of modern agriculture. It is the bloodstream of manufacturing. It is the nervous system of the digital economy. Without affordable and reliable power, every other strategy weakens. With it, everything else accelerates.\u201d He repeatedly underscored that symbolic or fragmented interventions are insufficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen the problem is defined as transition, the solution becomes symbolic. If the problem is defined as scarcity, the challenge becomes an investable business opportunity. Uganda does not need symbolic replacement; it needs scale. Unless the diagnosis is corrected, electrification will remain fragmented, expensive, and slow.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He used stark imagery to make his point: small solar lantern projects or mini-grids may make headlines, but they do not restructure national energy systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Solar lanterns are celebrated as progress. A handful of mini-grids are milestones. Feasibility studies for small wind installations are commissioned, disconnected from broader grid strategy or industrial demand. This is consequential. Aid-driven micro-projects cannot substitute for national infrastructure, and consultancy studies cannot replace megawatts,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He urged a shift from moralistic debates about energy transition to structural debates about industrialization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen the narrative centers around transition, the debate becomes moral. When the narrative centers around industrialization, the debate becomes structural. And structural debates solve real problems,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He concluded with a call to action: Uganda must build clean, scalable systems intelligently from the outset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne cannot transition away from darkness. One must first build the light. And when the light is built with structure, intelligence, and coordinated capital, it does far more than illuminate homes. It powers industries. It strengthens agriculture. It anchors jobs. It fuels growth. This is not a transition. This is the change that Uganda is waiting for.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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URN<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Source: https:\/\/www.independent.co.ug\/<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n