– Supporters argue nuclear power could provide stable, low-carbon electricity
– Critics warn of use of old technology, safety concerns, growing dependence on foreign partners
ADDIS ABABA
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed last month announced plans to build the country’s first nuclear power plants, signaling Africa’s growing interest in atomic energy as nations seek to meet rising power demand and reduce dependence on fossil fuels.
The announcement came during the inauguration of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Africa’s largest hydroelectric facility. Ethiopia aims to have two nuclear power plants operational between 2032 and 2034, each producing around 1,200 megawatts of electricity – increasing the county’s current electricity generation capacity by roughly 25%. The country signed a cooperation agreement in late September with Russia’s Rosatom to begin planning.
Africa is rich in uranium, the raw material for nuclear fuel. Niger and Namibia rank among the world’s top uranium producers, and South Africa is also rich in deposits.
Yet, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) July 2025 report, South Africa is the only African country with an operating nuclear power plant.
But that could soon change. Momentum is building across the continent as more countries explore either full-scale nuclear plants or smaller modular reactors (SMRs) – compact units that can generate up to 300 megawatts, are quicker and cheaper to build.
According to the IAEA, Egypt is furthest along, now constructing a four-unit plant. Its first reactor is expected to be completed by 2028.
Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria are in the next phase, having established nuclear authorities and begun preparatory work for future projects.
Other countries – including Algeria, Ethiopia, Morocco, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Sudan, Tunisia, Uganda and Zambia – have expressed interest in a nuclear plan, while Burkina Faso, Namibia, Tanzania and others are still considering whether they want to adopt the technology.
Nuclear supporters say the shift reflects a practical response to Africa’s energy deficit. According to the World Bank Group, more than 600 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa still lack access to electricity. Proponents argue that nuclear power offers a stable, low-carbon source that could complement renewable energy and strengthen grids often reliant on hydropower or fossil fuels.
– Concerns over cost and safety
Critics, however, see the trend as risky and misplaced.
Kenya’s Center for Justice Governance and Environmental Action (CJGEA) told Anadolu that nuclear energy “risks deepening inequality in access rather than solving it,” calling it “incompatible with the urgent energy needs of most African populations.”
The group said investment should focus instead on solar and wind power, which can be scaled up more quickly and distributed to off-grid communities.
In South Africa, Makoma Lekalakala, director of the environmental group Earthlife Africa, warned that nuclear energy depends heavily on scarce water resources and generates long-term waste management challenges.
“We don’t need nuclear in Africa. We do have abundant sun, we do have wind – that actually are the energies of the future,” she said.
– The South African experience
Located 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) north of Cape Town, the construction of the two-reactor Koeberg power plant, designed by the French company Framatome, started in 1976. The first unit was connected to the grid and became operational in 1984. The second unit followed in 1985.
With over 900 megawatts of power each, the two units are currently supplying around 5% of South Africa’s electricity. Although no major incidents were recorded during decades of activities, the Koeberg plant is not enough to prevent South Africans from facing regular blackouts.
Supporters point to its safety record and cost-effectiveness.
“Koeberg produces the cheapest electricity in our national grid,” said Emmanuel Montwedi, a senior nuclear engineer and chairperson of the South African Young Nuclear Professional Society, adding that plants can be “very beneficial … for poorer communities.”
But critics cite aging infrastructure and transparency concerns.
Lekalakala said that incidents at the Koeberg plant are “sometimes hidden to the public,” although whistleblowers confirm a dangerous situation.
“The International Atomic Energy Agency is also failing the people of South Africa. There may be incidents in other countries, but the problem is that there’s no transparency. Not much is being shared with the public,” she said.
The CJGEA also criticized the plant’s aging infrastructure, stressing “the potential for catastrophe in a densely populated area like the Western Cape remains a constant threat.”
– Nuclear energy diplomacy
Across Africa, governments are seeking international partners for technical support and financing.
Kenya, which aims to have its first nuclear plant operational by 2038, has signed cooperation agreements with Russia, the US, China and South Korea. Ghana has also signed an intergovernmental deal with Russia’s Rosatom while seeking additional partnerships with the US and China.
But Lekalakala said both countries face strong local resistance.
Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria, has long viewed nuclear energy as a way to diversify its power mix. Its plans were delayed after shelving the Geregu twin-reactor project with Russia, but according to the IAEA, Abuja has resumed preparations. In 2022, the government launched a commercial bidding process for a 4,000-megawatt plant and signed cooperation agreements with several potential vendors.
In West Africa, Burkina Faso and Niger – both of which recently distanced themselves from France – have turned to Russia’s Rosatom. Niger, one of the world’s leading uranium exporters, nationalized a French-run uranium mine this year and signed a nuclear cooperation deal with Moscow in July. Burkina Faso, meanwhile, announced plans to turn to nuclear in 2023, signed a nuclear agreement with Russia earlier this year and is reportedly interested in small modular reactors.
Several other countries are also making initial moves. The Ivory Coast plans to start a project in 2026 after completing feasibility studies. Guinea reached an agreement with Rosatom last year to develop floating nuclear plants, with units expected between 2026 and 2031.
Namibia, one of the world’s top uranium producers, has also chosen Russia as its main partner. President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah said her government intends to pursue nuclear power to reinforce development and energy security, and has created a national committee to explore options.
Rwanda aims to have small modular reactors operational by 2030, under agreements with Russia, Germany, Canada and the US. Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe are also exploring similar partnerships for feasibility studies and training programs.
– Dependency or opportunity?
Environmental groups warn that these partnerships may create new forms of dependency, placing critical components of national energy infrastructure under foreign control.
The CJGEA highlighted that African states pursuing nuclear power “rely on foreign partners” in terms of financing and construction, but also for fuel supply, expertise, regulation and waste management.
“Such arrangements can mirror colonial dynamics, where local agency is limited and strategic decisions are driven by external interests,” it added.
Lekalakala called the quest a “geopolitical warfare,” arguing that major powers are pushing “unwanted technologies” into Africa and seeking to extract more from the continent.
She also slammed the World Bank for funding the technology.
“How do you say you are a bank for reconstruction and development and then invest in climate-, environment-harming technologies? It’s not fair here. If they have stopped funding coal, if they have stopped funding oil, what more? Why do they have to fund nuclear? Because it’s more dangerous.”
However, Montwedi said such concerns over foreign dependence overlook the reality that the vast majority of major energy infrastructure projects in Africa depend on international partnerships.
“There is no African country that can do that themselves,” he said. “So we have to import the technology and give these contracts to foreign companies to build, unfortunately.”
– Growing interest, obstacles to debate
In many African countries, civil society groups remain under-informed or constrained in their ability to publicly debate nuclear plans.
“International media also has a critical role to play,” said the CJGEA. “Too often, global coverage of Africa’s nuclear projects focuses on geopolitics or investment deals, while ignoring the voices of local communities and civil society,” it said, also urging media to highlight alternatives such as solar, wind, and geothermal.
Emmanuel Montwedi, on the other hand, said anti-nuclear groups are generally more active in the public debate.
He recommends that nuclear companies and countries “develop a marketing strategy,” by partnering with media outlets to “appeal to the younger generation” via short videos “in a sort of a playful manner for the younger ones, in a more relaxed, not too serious manner for the youth.”
Whether nuclear power can deliver on its promises or prove a threat to the continent’s future remains to be seen, but experts on both sides agreed that open, informed debate should be key to shaping Africa’s energy path.
