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ASCENT Sudan: Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy and Digital Access Transformation project

Sudan

2025 - Ongoing

Clean TechnologiesElectricityEnergy ManagementRenewable Energy

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Project Description

Approach Words: Efficiency, Sustainability, Urban Livability

Public Policy Instruments: Physical Intervention, Planning

The ASCENT Sudan project is a World Bank approved operation under the regional ASCENT multi-phase programmatic approach, designed to expand access to electricity and digital services in selected Sudanese states while supporting resilience and early recovery in a conflict affected context.¹ It is explicitly framed as Phase 11 of the regional ASCENT program and contributes to Mission 300, an Africa wide initiative to connect 300 million people to electricity by 2030.² ³

The project’s vision is to close urgent gaps in power and connectivity so communities and local economies can function, recover, and grow.⁴ It aims to expand electricity access for households and enable improved delivery of basic services such as healthcare and education, while also supporting jobs through renewable energy employment, digital skills training, and better electricity and connectivity for small businesses and productive uses such as solar powered irrigation and food processing.⁵

ASCENT Sudan combines distributed renewable energy deployment with targeted support for telecom connectivity and productive uses, delivered through private sector-oriented mechanisms that promote long term operability. ⁶ Project components include: ⁷ ⁸

Access expansion: Provide electricity and enhanced internet access to 150,000 people in the targeted states.
Renewable systems deployment: Install 500 renewable energy systems across public spaces, farms, telecom networks, and small businesses.
Private sector delivery model: Use Results Based Financing (RBF) to incentivize private providers to deliver energy and digital services in pre-selected locations and for defined technology needs.
Sustainability focus: Pilot private sector led business models to improve maintenance and resilience of solar systems against extreme weather and operational challenges.
Regional coordination: Leverage the ASCENT Energy Access Platform under COMESA to improve coordination and regional learning.

Owner/Developer

World Bank ¹⁵

Funder

World Bank ¹⁶

Contractor/Implementer

Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank ¹⁶

Owner/Developer

World Bank ¹⁵

Contractor/Implementer

Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank ¹⁶

Funder

World Bank ¹⁶

By prioritizing renewable energy systems and private sector models that strengthen maintenance and durability, the project is designed to deliver cleaner power, reduce reliance on costly and fragile supply arrangements, and improve resilience of essential services in a conflict and displacement context.⁹ It also aligns with the World Bank’s approach to fragility, conflict, and violence settings, emphasizing continuity of critical services and resilience building during crises.¹⁰ ¹¹

The World Bank (IDA) provides financing for the project, and the Eastern and Southern African Trade and Development Bank (TDB) is named as the recipient and implementing agency.¹² The program uses an RBF mechanism to mobilize private sector delivery, with coordination support through the COMESA ASCENT platform for stakeholder alignment and knowledge exchange.¹³ ¹⁴

Project Link, Endnotes and References

Project Link

N.A.

Endnotes

N.A.

References

World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector
World Bank, ‘Mission 300 is Powering Africa: Connecting 300 million People to Electricity’ (World Bank) https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/energizing-africa accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), ‘Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy Access Transformation (ASCENT) in AFE Region, Multi Phase Programmatic Approach (MPA)’ (COMESA) https://www.comesa.int/accelerating-sustainable-clean-energy-access-transformation-ascent-in-afe-region-multi-phase-programmatic-approach-mpa/ accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘World Bank Group Strategy for Fragility, Conflict, and Violence 2020–2025’ (World Bank) https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/fragilityconflictviolence/publication/world-bank-group-strategy-for-fragility-conflict-and-violence-2020-2025 accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025)https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), ‘Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy Access Transformation (ASCENT) in AFE Region, Multi Phase Programmatic Approach (MPA)’ (COMESA) https://www.comesa.int/accelerating-sustainable-clean-energy-access-transformation-ascent-in-afe-region-multi-phase-programmatic-approach-mpa/ accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.
World Bank, ‘Advancing Energy and Digital Connectivity in Sudan: New Project to Support Private Sector in Building Resilience of Communities’ (Press Release, 2 June 2025) https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2025/06/02/advancing-energy-and-digital-connectivity-in-afe-sudan-new-project-to-support-private-sector accessed 13 December 2025.

ASCENT Sudan: Accelerating Sustainable and Clean Energy and Digital Access Transformation project

Sudan

2025 - Ongoing

Project Description

Project Link, Endnotes and References

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