YAOUNDE, Cameroon — Located at the core of Central Africa with its endless savannahs and dense rainforests, Cameroon is taking advantage of the sun to cross the energy divide. With more than 70% of its rural citizens without dependable electricity, decentralized solar systems and off-grid solutions are becoming critical components in the country’s pursuit of energy access for all. In fact, the transition to renewable energy will not only power more remote communities, but ultimately, it will foster, economic development, transform health care access, and increase resilience to climate change.

The Energy Paradox: Plenty vs. Disconnection

Cameroon has a strong renewable energy potential-field of solar, hydropower, and biomass, but paradoxically, more than 40% of its 27 million citizens are not tied into the national grid, especially in rural/peri-urban communities. While urban populations like Douala and Yaoundé enjoy relatively reliable electricity, rural households must supplement services, relying on relatively expensive diesel generators, kerosene lamps, and firewood for lighting and cooking-create situations that worsen poverty, deforestation, and indoor air pollution.

The gap is significant: 75% of rural citizens in Cameroon do not have access to electricity, as compared to 60% of those in the city. For farmers in places like Southwest Cameroon, this lack of access leads to up to a 40% loss of food after harvest due to a lack of storage and processing options. “Electricity is not only about lighting—it’s preserving food, powering irrigation, and creating jobs,” says Marie Njie, a smallholder farmer from Buea.

Solar Power: A Transformative Solution for Rural Development

Solar power systems offer a decentralized off-grid solution. The Rural Solar initiative from Huawei has now installed over 500 off-grid solar sites in various rural areas throughout Cameroon, producing 32.8 MW of electricity and reducing CO₂ emissions by 36,000 tons a year. These solar systems can power households, schools, and medical clinics, allowing children to do their homework during the night and clinics to store vaccines in a fridge. For example, in Poli, a village in the northern part of the country, solar kits were distributed by UNESCO’s PUERTEM project, which allowed families to stop collecting firewood, improving safety and nighttime economic activities. “Before solar, we had only three patients a week in our clinic because there was no power most of the time. Now we see patients every day.” said Sandrine Nguele, nurse, Batchenga, where a solar-powered clinic has transformed access to health services in their rural community. Projects like these demonstrate how solar energy is improving people’s lives and contributing to the country’s Vision 2035 objectives to reduce energy poverty and promote sustainable practices.

Policy Innovations and Hybrid Solutions

In addition to solar power, Cameroon is also improving its renewable portfolio. The Nachtigal Hydropower Plant was finished in 2025 and added 360 MW to the grid, 30% of which is renewable resources, which reduces our reliance on fossil fuels. Hybrid systems, built with solar, wind and micro-hydro, are also gaining popularity. A cycloturbine-solar hybrid built first by Purdue University is being tested in rural Cameroon to show how local small-scale renewable solutions are closing energy gaps caused by seasonality.
Policies are also changing. The Renewable Energy Master Plan (REMP) seeks to achieve 250 MW of solar generation by 2035. Campaigns like the Mission 300 coalition are trying to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030. But challenges remain. Bureaucratic bottlenecks, high upfront expense, and a lack of technical skills make broad implementation difficult. “The primary barrier is insufficient resources to mature projects and attract investors,” said Moussa Ousmanou, Director General of Cameroon’s Rural Electrification Agency (AER).

Community-Led Empowerment

Innovation at the community level will be critically important. In Southwest Cameroon, for instance, the PUERTEM project enabled farmers like Fadimatou to shift from firewood to solar energy, providing more time for education and entrepreneurship. Meanwhile, Huawei’s pay-as-you-go (PAYG) model has also enhanced energy adoption by allowing farmers to finance solar systems using micro-payments aligned with their agricultural cycles, thus making energy affordable. The use of public-private partnerships is also helping to expand positive community-level impact. The World Bank and African Development Bank financed project deployments such as the Maroua and Guider solar plants (36 MW) which replaced expensive diesel generation while reducing the regional carbon footprint. “These plants save 60,000 tons of CO₂ every year, equivalent to 100,000 trees,” says project lead Li Yanqing of Huawei.

Challenges Ahead

While progress has been made, there are still structural obstacles in the way. The cost of accessing remote areas to extend the grid is excessive, and the existing infrastructure is old and can result in about 20% energy loss in transmission. Furthermore, hydropower reliability is threatened by fluctuating climates and the system will require more resilient renewables. Financial models need to be re-invented. Although PAYG and cooperative financing have been successful, country-wide acceptance would need policies to de-risk investment and incentives. “We need simplified regulations and quicker sign-off to attract private capital,” observes Jean Mbarga, a solar entrepreneur in Buea.

A Solar-Powered Future

Cameroon’s energy transition is more than an electrification issue—it’s a new paradigm for development. With an emphasis on solar and off-grid, the energy poverty problem is being addressed, it’s generating upward-inclusive growth and it’s creating a model of anticipation for climate resilience in Africa. As UN Secretary General António Guterres said when he visited Cameroon in 2024, “Cameroon’s solar initiatives are a lighthouse for sustainable development on the continent.”