Access

The National Electrification Scheme (NES), launched in 1989 to ensure reliable electricity supply across Ghana by 2020, has played a pivotal role in expanding access nationwide and advancing Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7). At the start of the program in 1990, only about 20% of the population had electricity access. Since then, Ghana has made remarkable progress, maintaining the highest electricity access rate in sub-Saharan Africa.

Although the original target of universal access by 2020 has been extended to 2025, the country continues to make steady gains. As of the end of 2024, national electricity access stood at 89.4%. Based on the projected population of 33,007,618 (Ghana Statistical Service), an estimated 3.5 million Ghanaians still lack access to electricity.

Breakdown of the population’s electricity access:

• National: 89.4%
• Rural: 76.7%
• Urban: 100%

In Ghana, the grid-connected customer population remains predominantly residential. As of 2024, residential customers made up approximately 86% (5,281,816 out of 6,166,430) of the total electricity customer base.

However, despite this dominance in customer numbers, residential customers accounted for only 42.4% of total electricity consumption in 2024. The non-residential sector, comprising industry, services, agriculture, and transportation, consumed the remaining 57.6%, making it the largest consumer group in terms of electricity consumption.

The original target for Ghana, aligned with the National Electrification Scheme (NES), was universal access to electricity by 2020. By 2017, urban areas had already achieved 100% access, while rural areas lagged. In 2020, the overall access rate was 85.33%, missing the 100% target. Consequently, the goal of universal access was postponed to 2025.