Powering 300 million lives across Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030 isn’t just ambitious—it’s a game-changing mission that can redefine the region’s future. Mission 300, an initiative led by the World Bank and the African Development Bank, in collaboration with key partners, aims to bridge one of the world’s most pressing energy gaps. But can such a massive feat be achieved within just a few years?

The answer may lie in India’s electrification journey—a transformation so rapid and far-reaching that it rewrote the global playbook on energy access.

In 2014, only 75.8% of India’s population had electricity, trailing behind the global average of 83.2%. A combination of lack of awareness, high connection costs, infrastructure gaps, and logistical challenges left millions in the dark. Yet, in less than a decade, India pulled off what seemed impossible—achieving 100% electrification by 2021, surpassing the global average of 90.4%.

The real turning point came between 2017 and 2019, when India launched an electrification drive unlike anything seen before. In just 18 months, over 26 million households were connected to electricity—an effort so ambitious and efficient that it stands as one of the fastest electrification drives in history.

This wasn’t just a policy shift; it was a mission-driven movement, fueled by strong political leadership, financial innovation, and last-mile execution. While many countries have struggled with electrification for decades, India has shown that with the right intent and approach, progress can be achieved at an unprecedented pace.

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So, what can Mission 300 learn from India’s experience? A lot. By adopting proven strategies, Mission 300 can fast-track electrification across Sub-Saharan Africa—achieving its goal of reaching 300 million people by 2030 in a way that is efficient, scalable, and sustainable.

Key Strategies and Lessons for Mission 300

1. Strong leadership as the driving force

India’s electrification success was not just about policy—it was about unwavering leadership from the top. Electricity access was treated as a national mission, not just an infrastructure project, ensuring that every stakeholder—from central to local governments—was fully aligned with a clear, time-bound goal.

The government set an ambitious target to electrify 18,452 villages in 1,000 days, announced by the Prime Minister on August 15, 2015. This meant maintaining a pace of 19 villages per day, despite difficult terrains, conflict zones, and bureaucratic obstacles like Right of Way (ROW), railway, and forest clearances.

Key programs like Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) and Saubhagya launched in 2014 and 2017 respectively were implemented with strict deadlines, direct political oversight, and a mission-mode approach. Unlike traditional development projects, these initiatives had no room for slow decision-making—delays were not tolerated, and leadership was held accountable at every stage.

Lesson for Mission 300: For Mission 300 to succeed, political leadership across Sub-Saharan Africa must own this mission at the highest levels—not as a development goal, but as a top national and regional priority. Governments, regional bodies, and development partners must commit to clear, non-negotiable deadlines, with direct oversight from heads of state and a mechanism to ensure accountability for delays.

2. Institutional strength matters

A key factor in India’s electrification success was the role of established national power agencies that spearheaded the implementation of large-scale electrification programs. These government-backed institutions provided technical expertise, financial oversight, and execution capacity, ensuring that schemes like DDUGJY and Saubhagya were delivered efficiently across states.

The Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) and the Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) played a pivotal role by coordinating efforts between national and state agencies, managing the disbursement of funds, and ensuring adherence to policy mandates. This centralized leadership with decentralized execution allowed for efficient last-mile delivery while maintaining policy consistency and accountability—key factors in achieving 100% electrification despite diverse regional challenges.

Lesson for Mission 300: For Mission 300 to succeed across multiple countries, it must build strong institutional capacity at the regional and national levels. A dedicated, well-resourced central agency or coordinating body—with clear mandates, technical expertise, and financial oversight—can drive implementation, ensuring that electrification efforts remain structured, scalable, and resilient against political and operational disruptions.

3. Digital tools for smarter execution

India’s electrification success was greatly enhanced by digital tools, ensuring real-time tracking, transparency, and accountability at every stage.

A key innovation was the GARV mobile app, which provided real-time electrification data at the national, state, district, and village levels. This replaced manual reporting, reducing delays and making progress tracking more efficient. The app also enabled milestone-based verification, where contractors uploaded photos of completed work, ensuring better quality control.

To improve on-the-ground monitoring, over 350 young electrical engineers (known as Gram Vidyut Abhiyanta) were deployed across 18,452 villages. Equipped with tablets installed with GARV App, they visited villages regularly, recorded progress according to checklist, updated the progress in GARV app, and flagged delays, ensuring real-time problem-solving.

India’s electrification drive also leveraged informal digital communication channels to enhance coordination and problem-solving. State-wise WhatsApp groups connected young electrical engineers with senior officials, allowing real-time issue resolution and guidance.

Additionally, a social media-driven grievance redressal system allowed citizens to report issues via Twitter, Facebook, and email, increasing public participation and holding authorities accountable. Features like Geographic Information System (GIS) asset mapping and village adoption tracking further strengthened oversight.

Lesson for Mission 300: To accelerate electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa, Mission 300 should adopt a centralized real-time digital tracking system to monitor progress, verify milestones, and enhance accountability. Deploying local field engineers for real-time data collection and leveraging social media for public engagement can significantly improve transparency and responsiveness.

4. One Size Doesn’t Fit All

India’s electrification success was not just about expanding the grid—it was about adapting to diverse challenges through a hybrid model that combined grid extension, off-grid solar solutions, and decentralized mini-grids to ensure universal access.
The grid expansion strategy under Saubhagya played a central role, connecting over 26 million households through strengthened transmission and distribution networks. Special efforts were made to electrify challenging terrains, including Himalayan villages, Rajasthan’s deserts, and dense forests in the Northeast.

For households in remote and inaccessible areas, where grid extension was unviable, off-grid solar solutions were deployed. These included solar photovoltaic (SPV) standalone systems with 200–300W power packs, LED lights, a DC fan, a DC power plug, and five years of maintenance support.

While Saubhagya did not directly fund mini-grids, states like Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh ensured that their ongoing mini-grid projects complemented broader rural electrification efforts, which helped integrate decentralized energy solutions more effectively.

Lesson for Mission 300: A hybrid electrification model—grid expansion where feasible, mini-grids for underserved areas, and off-grid solar for remote households—is key to reaching the last mile. Mission 300 must prioritize both large-scale infrastructure and decentralized solutions to ensure affordable, reliable, and sustainable electricity access.

Power to the People

Electrification is not just about infrastructure—it’s about ensuring that people adopt, use, and benefit from electricity in meaningful ways. In India, this was achieved through community-driven engagement strategies that created extensive awareness and fostered local ownership.

The government launched nationwide awareness campaigns, educating households on how electricity could improve livelihoods—boosting income generation, enhancing education, and reducing reliance on hazardous fuels like kerosene.

Saubhagya not only provided free electricity connections to poor households in rural and urban areas but also ensured affordability for others through a nominal fee of ₹500, payable in 10 monthly installments of ₹50. This small but structured payment plan ensured inclusion without burdening low-income families, resulting in higher acceptance and sustained usage.

Additionally, India leveraged grassroots networks, partnering with NGOs, women’s self-help groups, and local community organizations to promote adoption. These groups played a crucial role in building trust, assisting with administrative processes, and ensuring that newly electrified homes utilized the power available to them.

In states like Bihar and Jharkhand, women-led groups played a crucial role in driving electricity adoption, especially in regions where households were hesitant due to reliance on traditional fuels or cost concerns. They also helped transform newly electrified homes into micro-enterprises, showcasing the economic value of electricity access.

Lesson for Mission 300: Electrification must be demand-driven, not just supply-focused. Mission 300 should incorporate community outreach, financial support mechanisms, and grassroots partnerships to ensure widespread adoption and long-term impact. Simply bringing electricity to households is not enough—people must see tangible social and economic benefits to fully embrace it.

From India’s Success to Mission 300’s Execution

India’s electrification journey is more than just a success story—it is proof that universal energy access is achievable with the right mix of leadership, strategy, and execution. It demonstrates that scale and speed are possible when governance is strong, institutions are empowered, and innovation drives implementation.

For Mission 300, the challenge is immense—but so is the opportunity. With strong public financing commitments globally and regionally, alongside efforts to catalyze private and philanthropic investment, success will depend on turning investment into action, ensuring transparency, and fostering national ownership. The real test lies not in ambition but in execution, accountability, and the political will to see it through.

Sub-Saharan Africa is on the verge of an energy revolution. The blueprint exists, the tools are ready, and the momentum is building. What’s needed now is bold leadership, decisive action, and an unwavering commitment to power 300 million lives—perhaps even ahead of schedule.

(Piyush Verma is a global expert in energy and climate governance)