Ethiopia seeks nearly $11 billion for household electricity connections

Monday 9th November 2026

By inAfrika Newsroom

Ethiopia is seeking nearly $11 billion from development partners to expand electricity access to households, The EastAfrican reported on 9 November. The amount represents about 61% of the estimated cost of the government’s third National Electrification Programme.

The Ministry of Water and Energy’s programme estimates about $18.1 billion under one of its planning scenarios. About $16.2 billion would go to grid connections and $1.86 billion to off-grid systems. The estimate covers connections to users and excludes wider investments in transmission and power generation.

The programme targets universal access by 2035. In that scenario, the ministry estimates that off-grid investments would serve about 4.4 million households through options including stand-alone solar and local mini-grids. The requested external finance is a target. The EastAfrican reported no confirmed commitment covering that amount.

Ethiopia already supplies electricity to neighbouring countries through infrastructure including the Ethiopia–Kenya interconnector. Those cross-border sales use high-voltage transmission lines. The electrification programme focuses on extending distribution and connecting users where a local network or stand-alone system is needed.

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