Note: This dataset has been updated with transmission lines for the MENA region.
This is the most complete and up-to-date open map of Africa's electricity grid network. This dataset serves as an updated and improved replacement for the Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD) data that was published in 2007.
Coverage
This dataset includes planned and existing grid lines for all continental African countries and Madagascar, as well as the Middle East region. The lines range in voltage from sub-kV to 700 kV EHV lines, though there is a very large variation in the completeness of data by country.
An interactive tool has been created for exploring this data, the Africa Electricity Grids Explorer.
Sources
The primary sources for this dataset are as follows:
-
Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (AICD)
-
OSM © OpenStreetMap contributors
-
For MENA: Arab Union of Electricity and country utilities.
-
For West Africa: West African Power Pool (WAPP) GIS database
-
World Bank projects archive and IBRD maps
There were many additional sources for specific countries and areas. This information is contained in the files of this dataset, and can also be found by browsing the individual country datasets, which contain more extensive information.
Limitations
Some of the data, notably that from the AICD and from World Bank project archives, may be very out of date. Where possible this has been improved with data from other sources, but in many cases this wasn't possible. This varies significantly from country to country, depending on data availability. Thus, many new lines may exist which aren't shown, and planned lines may have completely changed or already been constructed.
The data that comes from World Bank project archives has been digitized from PDF maps. This means that these lines should serve as an indication of extent and general location, but shouldn't be used for precisely location grid lines.
