The Global African Hydrogen Summit (GAH2S) 2024, to take place in Windhoek from 3-5 September, was officially inaugurated by Mines and Energy Minister Tom Alweendo and marks a significant milestone in Africa’s journey towards sustainable energy leadership.
Themed “From Ambition to Action: Fuelling Africa’s Green Industrial Revolution”, the dynamic three-day summit will showcase pan-African project and investment opportunities across the hydrogen, renewables, power, infrastructure, transportation, and mobility sectors.
With representation from over 26 countries and stakeholders across the hydrogen sector value chain, this pioneering summit promises to be a catalyst for transformative change.
The summit is being organised by London-based DMG Events under the patronage of the Government of Namibia, and in partnership with the Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board (NIPDB).
The summit aims to address challenges such as financing, investment, infrastructure development, policy, and technology, while emphasising the importance of collaboration to drive progress.
The Global African Hydrogen Summit has been born out of a deep necessity to solve these challenges by inclusively convening stakeholders to facilitate collaboration, shape policy, drive critical investment and financing, and broker deal and project closure.
Launching the summit, Alweendo said climate change and energy security were inevitable challenges, with climate innovation and decarbonisation being a critical response towards a more sustainable future. Hydrogen has emerged as a key solution to meet Africa’s energy needs with Namibia poised to play a pivotal role in the acceleration towards net zero.
“We understand the importance of adopting a pan-African approach to engaging with the world, aiming to explore and capitalise on the value brought by the development and implementation of all carbon technologies contributing to the realisation of green industrialisation and sustainable growth for African economies,” said Alweendo.
”On behalf of the Namibian Government, I hereby extend an invitation to our fellow African countries, and the rest of the world to join us at the Global Africa Hydrogen Summit in Windhoek, to exchange ideas and forge partnerships that will help us unlock the full potential of our renewable energy resources, enhance energy security on the continent and beyond,” the Minister said.
Namibia is strategically poised to become the sustainable energy capital of Africa with the potential to produce green hydrogen at less than one and a half US dollars per kilogramme. Additional advantages include an abundance of solar and wind resources, 46.7 million tonnes of biomass that can be harvested sustainably and a vast, sparsely populated land mass.
NIPDB Chief Executive Officer Nangula Uaandja shared the Government’s ambitions for green investments as well as the importance of local content, skills development, youth engagement and opportunities for the entire hydrogen value chain integration, including MSMEs.
Africa holds a key to decarbonising the global energy system and can become a leading player in hydrogen made from renewables. However, there are many challenges including financing, investment, infrastructure development, policy, regulation, standards, technology, demand generation and a fragmented financial market to trade. Therefore, partnerships and collaboration are fundamental to driving progress.
