Burkina Faso: $40m for rural electrification

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank Group based in Tunisia has approved a loan of 40 million US dollars for Burkina Faso to fund a rural electrification project.

The ministry of mines and power said the fund will boost the country's ambition to considerably increase electricity supply to rural and urban areas, while improving quality and reliability of the service.

The ministry plans a renovation and extension of some 1,800 km of the national grid, which will improve national coverage with the supply of 150 new villages, state media RTB said.

The needs of 800,000 people in 140,000 households will be met by this project, according to reports. Street lighting will be extended, with the installation of 750 new units.

The project will also increase access to the provision of basic services such as clean water, health, education, and communication, at the same time improving the efficiency of those services.

To meet this challenge, Burkina Faso government said it will set up interconnections with neighbouring countries such as Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana.

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