WASHINGTON – The Electrify Africa Act of 2013, a comprehensive measure that would bring electricity to millions of sub-Saharan Africans living in impoverished conditions, has passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
At zero cost to the American taxpayer, H.R. 2548 is a bill that resembles United States President Barack Obama’s Power Africa initiative and is supported by both Democrats and Republicans.
According to AllAfrica, “The bipartisan legislation would establish a U.S. strategy to support affordable, reliable electricity in sub-Saharan Africa in order to improve economic growth, health and education in Africa, while helping job creation in the United States through greater exports.”
Congressmen Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Ed Royce (R-CA) introduced the bill last year, which ever since gained bipartisan support by other congressional members.
Royce, who also served as Chairman, said, “Today’s important legislation offers a market-based, strategic framework to bring affordable and reliable energy to many of the 600 million people in sub-Saharan Africa who currently have none.”
Due to its “great economic potential,” Royce also said the U.S. must be involved where it “has left a void for economic investment in Africa.” The bill is designed so that the U.S. would benefit in the long run after transforming many parts of Africa into consumer societies. More jobs would be created in the U.S. due to the potential demand for American exports in Africa.
H.R. 2548 was well-received by the House Foreign Affairs Committee. However, this passage is only the beginning. The Electrify Africa Act now needs to make its way through the House, the Senate, and the President before it can become a law.
Nevertheless, Gerry Connolly (D-VA) during the session made some very important arguments of why H.R. 2548 should be enacted.
In response to Mo Brooks (R-AL,) who mentioned that the U.S. could not afford the mark-ups of the proposed legislation, Connolly said, “It is a false choice to tell the American people we cannot continue to afford being engaged in the world.”
“Indeed Mr. Brooks’ own home state of Alabama was a prime beneficiary of rural electrification during the New Deal and I am sure his constituents are grateful that a different administration at a time of far greater economic stress than today made that investment in his citizens, in his state in his economy, and the return on that investment has been profound,” explained Connolly.
Despite passing the Committee, Oxfam believes that H.R. 2548 should “reflect key principles of responsible energy development.”
According to the organization, the Electrify Africa Act must expand access to electricity throughout sub-Saharan Africa with clean and renewable energy sources.
Oxfam also argues it “should also support inclusive, transparent, and accountable processes for planning, implementation, and management.”
By turning H.R. 2548 into law, the U.S. would bring help millions of people escape poverty in Africa and turn them into consumers. In the long run, the U.S. would also benefit because it could increase its exports to these new consumers. The Electrify Africa Act is therefore a good investment for America.
– Juan Campos
Sources: AllAfrica, Brookings, Oxfam, YouTube
Photo: Foreign Affairs