By Edmilson Ramiro Luís Ricardo
Electrical Engineer
In Angola, talking about a lack of electricity no longer quite describes the problem. The issue is not simply whether a community has a grid connection. It is whether that connection provides electricity reliably.
There are neighbourhoods and villages where the line reaches, but power comes and goes without warning. There are municipalities where schools depend on diesel generators when grid electricity is unavailable, with generator use constrained by the availability and cost of fuel, as well as by maintenance and logistics.
The national picture has improved considerably, but it conceals a major geographical divide. World Bank data show that 51.1% of Angola’s population had access to electricity in 2023 [1]. Rural access remains far below urban access, making the last mile of electrification one of the country’s most difficult challenges. [1]
And even where electricity infrastructure exists, access on paper does not necessarily mean reliable electricity in practice. For schools, that distinction matters. A connection that works only intermittently can be almost as disruptive to education as no connection at all.
What intermittency costs a school
You don’t need an engineering study to see the immediate effects.
Without stable electricity, a school cannot reliably operate a computer room, maintain refrigeration for medicines or food where such facilities are required, or provide lighting for activities after dark. Equipment such as computers, printers, refrigerators and other electrical appliances can also be exposed to repeated outages and voltage fluctuations, increasing the risk of damage and shortening their useful life.
The World Bank and ESMAP note that reliable electricity in schools enables digital learning and extends usable hours, while unreliable electricity can undermine the effectiveness of investments in education and other public services [2]. In health facilities, dependable electricity is also essential for refrigeration, medical equipment and services after dark [2].
But the less visible cost is pedagogical.
A school without reliable electricity has fewer opportunities to use digital equipment, internet-connected learning resources and other technologies that increasingly form part of modern education. Electricity also enables teachers and students to work beyond daylight hours and allows schools to function more effectively as community facilities.
For Angola, therefore, the question should not be limited to how many schools are technically connected to the grid. It should also be how many can depend on electricity when they actually need it.
Why the problem persists
The simple answer — “there isn’t enough investment” — is true, but incomplete.
As part of my final-year thesis in Electrical Engineering, I studied in detail the case of a school in Mulenvos, in the Viana municipality. That case illustrates several challenges that are relevant to rural electrification more broadly.
First, grid expansion has economic constraints. Extending electricity networks to dispersed communities can be significantly more expensive per connection than serving densely populated areas. The World Bank notes that grid extension is not always the most economically attractive approach in remote areas, where mini-grid and off-grid solutions can be more appropriate [3].
Angola has already invested heavily in expanding and improving its electricity system. The World Bank’s Electricity Sector Improvement and Access Project was designed to increase electricity access while also improving transmission, distribution and utility performance [4].
Second, connection does not automatically mean reliability. Improving access therefore requires more than constructing new connections. Transmission and distribution performance, maintenance and utility capacity are also important components of a functioning electricity system [4].
Third, diesel generators solve an immediate problem but create another dependency. A generator can provide electricity when the grid is unavailable, but it depends on a continuous supply of fuel, transportation, mechanical maintenance and technicians. Those requirements become particularly difficult in remote communities.
Diesel prices have also continued to rise. In June 2026, Angola’s diesel price was increased from 400 to 420 kwanzas per litre, with the new price taking effect nationwide from 13 June [5]. This does not by itself prove that solar generation is always cheaper than diesel. But it reinforces the importance of considering the full lifecycle cost of diesel generation — including fuel logistics, servicing, spare parts and equipment replacement — rather than looking only at the initial generator cost.
Fourth — and this point is often overlooked — there is a lack of site-specific energy data.
Many electrification decisions can be made without a sufficiently detailed assessment of a school’s actual electricity demand: how many classrooms need lighting, which appliances are used, how many computers operate, what the school hours are and what additional loads may be expected in the future.
Without that diagnosis, even a technically sound solution risks being poorly sized. A system can be too small to meet essential demand or unnecessarily large and expensive.
That is why an energy survey should be one of the first steps, not an afterthought.
Measures within our reach today
I am not arguing for solutions imported from countries with vastly different energy budgets. I am arguing for measures realistic for Angola’s current stage of development.
Prioritise schools and health posts in rural electrification programmes
If electrification decisions are based primarily on population density and the cost per connection, isolated public institutions can remain difficult to serve.
Schools and health posts should therefore receive explicit consideration in rural electrification planning. Electricity in these facilities creates benefits beyond the individual building: it supports education, health, communication and community resilience.
This does not mean bypassing households. It means recognising that public institutions can serve as strategic anchors for rural development.
Use standalone solar-plus-battery systems where grid extension is not yet practical
Photovoltaic generation combined with battery storage is now a mature option for providing electricity to remote public facilities.
The World Bank and ESMAP specifically identify off-grid solar as a way to bring electricity to schools and health centres that are difficult or uneconomic to reach through conventional grid extension [2]. The same analysis stresses, however, that installing equipment without a long-term maintenance model can result in outages and service disruption [2].
The key point is therefore not simply “install solar panels.”
It is to install a properly sized solar-and-storage system, based on a site-specific energy assessment, with financing for operation and maintenance built into the project from the beginning.
In my Mulenvos case study, a 10 kWp system was used as a reference configuration in the technical analysis [6]. That figure should not be interpreted as a universal size for every rural school. Each installation should be sized according to the school’s actual demand, operating schedule and required level of service.
Invest in local technical training, not just equipment
A solar system without a maintenance strategy is not a sustainable solution.
Panels need inspection and cleaning. Batteries eventually need replacement. Inverters and other electrical components can fail. Monitoring systems need to be checked and faults diagnosed.
Short technical training programmes delivered through regional polytechnic institutes could help create local capacity to operate and maintain rural energy systems.
Evidence from other African energy programmes also shows the importance of training local personnel and establishing long-term maintenance arrangements. For example, a World Bank-supported solar programme in Zimbabwe included technical training for health workers alongside long-term warranty arrangements for key components [7].
This is particularly important because the economics of decentralised electricity depend not only on the cost of installation but also on whether the system continues delivering electricity years after installation.
Make energy surveys a requirement before public investment
A simple technical survey should establish:
- how many classrooms require electricity;
- what equipment is currently installed;
- what equipment is expected to be added;
- operating hours;
- daily and seasonal electricity demand;
- critical loads that cannot tolerate interruption;
- available space for photovoltaic equipment;
- battery-storage requirements; and
- the availability of existing grid or generator infrastructure.
The cost of such an assessment is small compared with the cost of installing an incorrectly sized system.
It also creates a baseline against which future performance can be measured.
Move towards performance-based financing
Public-private partnerships can be useful, but the structure matters.
Instead of paying an installer almost entirely when equipment is delivered, contracts can link part of the payment to continued service performance.
The World Bank and ESMAP’s recent work on sustainable energy for schools and health centres specifically recommends moving from one-off solar installations towards service-based, performance-driven models. Under an Energy-as-a-Service approach, a private energy service company can be responsible for installing, operating and maintaining the system, with payments linked to electricity actually delivered against agreed performance standards [2].
The model is already being tested in African countries including Benin, Madagascar, Nigeria and Uganda, according to the World Bank report [2].
For Angola, such models could help shift the focus from “Was the system installed?” to “Is the school still receiving reliable electricity?”
What is not worth doing yet
It is also worth saying plainly what is not realistic.
This is not the moment to treat every emerging energy technology as an appropriate solution for every isolated school.
Green hydrogen is an important technology with potential applications in Angola’s future energy system. But that does not mean green hydrogen should become the default solution for a single rural school today.
In my undergraduate thesis, “Development of a Green Hydrogen Electric Power Generation System for Rural Electrification: Case Study — Escola 5066 Mulenvos,” I compared hydrogen-based generation with diesel generation for the specific case studied [6]. My calculations indicated a substantially higher cost for the hydrogen configuration under the assumptions used in the study.
That result should be understood as a case-study finding, not a universal cost ratio. The economics of hydrogen depend on electrolyser costs, electricity availability, storage, conversion efficiency, utilisation rates, financing and the cost of alternative generation.
Technological realism matters as much as ambition.
Angola’s solar resource is not the missing ingredient
Angola has substantial solar energy potential.
The World Bank Group and ESMAP’s Global Solar Atlas provides geospatial data on solar irradiation and photovoltaic power potential for Angola [8]. The resource varies across the country, which is precisely why project-level assessment is important.
The opportunity is therefore not simply about having sunlight. It is about converting that resource into dependable electricity at the point where it is needed.
For an isolated school, the relevant question is not whether Angola has enough sunshine. It is whether the proposed system has been correctly designed, financed, installed, monitored and maintained.
The real challenge is reliability
Angola’s electricity-access figures are improving. The World Bank’s latest country data put national electricity access at 51.1% in 2023, an important improvement but still far from universal access [1].
The next stage of the challenge is therefore not only to connect more people.
It is to ensure that electricity delivered to communities, schools and health facilities is reliable, affordable and sustainable.
That requires a combination of grid expansion, stronger transmission and distribution, decentralised renewable systems where grid extension is impractical, local technical capacity, accurate energy assessments and financing models that reward long-term performance.
Until rural school electrification is treated not as an occasional project dependent on donations or official visits, but as a long-term public policy with clear criteria, dedicated funding and guaranteed maintenance, the problem will remain only partially solved.
A school does not need electricity merely because a connection has been installed.
It needs electricity when the lights are switched on.
And it needs those lights to stay on.
About The Author
Edmilson Ramiro Luís Ricardo is an electrical engineer trained at the Instituto Superior Politécnico de Tecnologias e Ciências (ISPTEC) in Angola. He is the author of the undergraduate thesis, “Development of a Green Hydrogen Electric Power Generation System for Rural Electrification: Case Study — Escola 5066 Mulenvos.”
Sources & References
[1] World Bank. Angola — Data: Access to electricity (% of population). World Bank data report electricity access of 51.1% for Angola in 2023.
World Bank — Angola Data
[2] World Bank / ESMAP. Sustainable Energy for Schools and Health Centers: Public–Private Partnerships for People’s Prosperity. The report covers off-grid solar, maintenance requirements, Energy-as-a-Service and performance-driven models for public institutions. It also identifies pilot experience in Benin, Madagascar, Nigeria and Uganda.
World Bank — Sustainable Energy for Schools and Health Centers
[3] World Bank. Sustainable Development Goal on Energy (SDG7) and the World Bank Group. The World Bank notes that mini-grid and off-grid solutions can be appropriate in remote areas where extension of the main grid is not the most economically attractive option.
World Bank — SDG7 and Energy Access
[4] World Bank. World Bank Supports Angolans’ Electrification with $250 Million. The Electricity Sector Improvement and Access Project addresses electricity access as well as transmission, distribution and utility performance in Angola.
World Bank — Angola Electrification Project
[5] Instituto Regulador dos Derivados de Petróleo (IRDP) / Sonangol. Angola’s diesel price was increased from 400 to 420 kwanzas per litre, effective 13 June 2026. The June 2026 price change was reported by Angolan media citing the relevant authorities.
Girassol Notícias — Diesel Price Increase to 420 Kz
[6] Ricardo, E. R. L. (2026). Development of a Green Hydrogen Electric Power Generation System for Rural Electrification: Case Study — Escola 5066 Mulenvos. Unpublished undergraduate thesis, Instituto Superior Politécnico de Tecnologias e Ciências (ISPTEC), Angola. Source of the author’s original technical analysis, system modelling, 10 kWp reference configuration and green-hydrogen/diesel case-study calculations. Not publicly available online.
[7] World Bank. Empowering the Health Sector Through Solar Access: A Lifeline for Zimbabwe’s Medical Facilities. The programme included long-term warranty arrangements and training of health workers in troubleshooting and preventive maintenance.
World Bank — Solar Access in Zimbabwe’s Health Facilities
[8] World Bank Group / ESMAP. Global Solar Atlas — Angola. Geospatial resource for solar irradiation and photovoltaic power potential.
Global Solar Atlas — Angola
Image credit: Edmilson Ramiro Luís Ricardo