(ARLINGTON, VA) — The Senate’s passage today of the Electrify Africa Act of 2015 received approval from the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). The bill encourages meaningful public-private partnerships that will bring electricity to 50 million people in sub-Saharan Africa and help to lift impoverished African communities out of subsistence living.
“NRECA is encouraged by the bill’s emphasis on electricity distribution and expanding access,” said Jeffrey Connor, NRECA’s interim CEO. “Poles and wires are what move electricity from power plants to people, and this bill will help ensure that crucial step isn’t left out. We are thankful to Senator Corker, Senator Cardin, and those stalwart legislators who believe that promoting economic development by expanding access to electricity will benefit people on both sides of the Atlantic.”
NRECA’s international affiliate—NRECA International – has worked in developing countries since 1962. Its global commitment has provided electricity to more than 110 million people in 43 countries.
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association is the national service organization that represents more than 900 private, not-for-profit, consumer-owned electric cooperatives in the United States. Those co-ops provide service to 42 million people in 47 states.