Summit Program
Three days of ministerial roundtables, plenary sessions, breakout sessions, training sessions, and exhibitions focused on energy transformation and economic reform in Africa.
- Total Sessions
- 28
- Think Tank Leaders
- +150
- Thematic Tracks
- 6
Day 0 — From Tools to Transformation: Building the Foundations for Energy Reform
28 October 2026
Closed-door statutory meeting of ACBF's governance bodies, running in parallel with the opening day. Attendance is by invitation only; the main Summit programme continues for all other delegates.
Knowledge Sharing Session A — Addressing Key Regulatory Challenges in the African Energy Sector
Regulatory measures for universal access, efficient use of generation resources, and attracting private investment across the electricity supply chain. Delivered by the African School of Regulation (ASR).
- Utility Viability
- Power Sector Reform
Knowledge Sharing Session B — Energy Data, Evidence, and Policy Use: Tools for Think Tanks and Researchers
Applying energy data systems and research evidence to real-world policy decisions, with hands-on work on tools and open data platforms. Delivered by the ATTP Secretariat.
- Financing
- Utility Viability
Roundtable 1 — Unlocking African Philanthropy's Potential: Ecosystem Tools and Policy Frameworks for Sustainable Impact
How ecosystem tools and policy frameworks can unlock African philanthropic capital for sustainable development, drawing on WINGS' Enabling Environment Guide and Playbook of Practices. Hosted by WINGS Network.
- Financing
- Leadership Dialogue
Roundtable 2 — Powering Africa's Trade Transformation: Think Tank Insights on AfCFTA Implementation
Think tank research on AfCFTA implementation and how energy systems underpin trade, industrialization, mobility and connectivity. Hosted by the ACBF CADAST Project.
- AfCFTA Implementation
- Industrialization
Policy Dialogue 1 — Mission 300 Country Compacts: Translating Pledges into Connections
Country delegations and partners assess Mission 300 Country Compact implementation, share lessons from early movers, and link policy reform, institutional capacity and financing. Hosted by the World Bank and the AfDB/ACBF.
- Financing
- Keynote Plenary
Policy Dialogue 2 — Powering Africa's Green Industrialization: An Africa-Europe Partnership for Productive Energy and Economic Transformation
The policy, regulatory and financing conditions needed to connect energy systems with industry, agro-processing, SMEs and green value chains through the Africa-Europe partnership. Delivered by the Africa-Europe Foundation.
- Financing
- Industrialization
Policy Dialogue 3 — Blended Finance and Guarantees for African Energy Infrastructure
Guarantee instruments, de-risking tools and blended finance structures for Sub-Saharan Africa's infrastructure gap, including a FAGACE co-financing case. Hosted by FAGACE and GSF Global Advisors.
- Financing
Special Session 1 — Sustainable Domestic Financing for Tobacco Control in Africa: From Evidence to Action
Senior officials from Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, Ethiopia and Kenya on what it takes to move from a signed tobacco-control commitment to a funded, functioning system. Hosted by the ACBF Tobacco Control Program and IECT (Benin).
- Financing
Special Session 2 — Building the Next Generation of Agribusiness Institutions: IAPA's Journey in Energy-Enabled Agribusiness Transformation
How sustainable agribusiness institutions turn energy investments into productive outcomes through enterprise development, skills, technology and market integration — featuring IAPA's institutional journey. Hosted by ACBF (ABF/GIZ).
- Industrialization
Special Session 3 — Sustainability, Ownership, and Accountability in Africa's Electricity Sector Reforms: What Role Do Consumers Play?
The role of citizen-consumers, through consumer organizations, in designing, owning and monitoring electricity sector reforms to strengthen their viability, effectiveness and legitimacy. Hosted by the African Consumers Organization (ACO).
- Power Sector Reform
- Leadership Dialogue
Special Session 4 — Insights from the Africa Export Competitiveness Report: From Energy Access to Export Competitiveness
Key findings of the 2026 Africa Export Competitiveness Report and how reliable, affordable, sustainable energy can enhance industrial competitiveness, value addition and export diversification. Hosted by ACBF and partners.
- Industrialization
- AfCFTA Implementation
Day 1 — Powering Transformation: Leadership, Finance, and the Politics of Energy Reform
29 October 2026
Opening Ceremony — Official Opening of the 2026 Africa Think Tank Summit
Welcome by the host government, institutional addresses by co-conveners, a keynote and a cultural moment, with a simultaneous webcast for virtual participants.
- Official Ceremony
- Ministerial
Ministers' Panel — Political Leadership for Power Sector Reform: Challenges, Trade-offs, and Accountability
Energy and finance ministers exchange experiences on the political economy of power sector reform — tariffs, utility governance, fiscal sustainability and regional market integration. Held under the Chatham House Rule.
- Ministerial
- Power Sector Reform
Panel Discussion 1 — Africa Think Tank Leaders Forum: Who Owns Africa's Energy Transformation Agenda?
Leading policy research institutions examine how think tanks can move from producing research to becoming strategic actors in energy policy design, reform, investment and accountability.
- Leadership Dialogue
Panel Discussion 2 — Financing Energy Transformation in a Debt-Constrained Context
Blended finance, domestic resource mobilization, tariff reform and de-risking — challenging the assumption that more concessional money is the primary solution and focusing on governance and structural reforms.
- Financing
Breakout A — Utility Viability, Regulation, and Power Sector Governance
Links between utility financial viability, regulatory credibility and power sector governance — distilling practical lessons on cost recovery, regulatory independence, consumer protection and turnaround management.
- Utility Viability
- Power Sector Reform
Breakout B — Inclusive Energy Transition: Clean Cooking, Gender, and Decentralized Solutions
Demand-side solutions, gender equity in energy access, and off-grid and mini-grid innovation — building a concrete evidence base for gender-disaggregated energy access commitments.
- Leadership Dialogue
Breakout C — From Evidence to Energy Access: Emerging Findings from the ATTP Project Research Consortia
The three ATTP research consortia present preliminary findings on energy, economic transformation and governance, with structured feedback from a policy respondent panel. Flagship output of the World Bank-funded ATTP Project.
- Keynote Plenary
Program.anchor.networking.description
Day 2 — From Commitments to Delivery: Consolidating Action for Impact
30 October 2026
Day 1 Takeaways and Reflections
A concise synthesis of the key messages, insights and reflections from Day 1, and what they mean for turning commitments and evidence into implementation. Reflection lead: Dr Barassou Diawara.
- Keynote Plenary
Fireside Chat — From Commitments to Impact: Youth Questions the Experience of Reform
An intergenerational conversation on the political trade-offs, institutional bottlenecks and implementation challenges that shape the journey from policy commitments to tangible results.
- Leadership Dialogue
Keynote Plenary — Regional Power Pools and Cross-Border Electricity Trade: From Potential to Implementation
A deep-dive on the political economy of regional power integration — financing transmission corridors, regulatory harmonization and cross-border renewables — opening with live data on intra-African power trade.
- Keynote Plenary
Commitment Dialogue — Five Seats, One Ask: Youth, Consumers, Financiers, Think Tanks and Policymakers Commit to Africa's Energy Transformation
A consensus-building panel bringing together the constituencies the Summit engaged separately — youth, financiers, think tank leaders, consumers and policymakers — to translate three days of dialogue into a shared, named commitment.
- Leadership Dialogue
Launch of New Initiatives & Signing of MoUs
Formal unveiling of the Africa Export Competitiveness Report and the Africa Knowledge Hub, and signing of an ACBF-REPAIR/ARC Ltd Memorandum of Understanding.
- Official Ceremony
Official Closing Ceremony — Summit Declaration & ATTS 2027 Handover
Closing addresses from co-conveners and the host government, the official closing declaration, and the ceremonial handover of the ATTS 2027 flag to the designated host country.
- Official Ceremony