USAID Southern Africa Energy Program Zambia Country Profile

Over 2,500 farmers received training in sustainable agriculture practices during the first year, resulting in a 60% yield improvement in demonstration plots. The USAID Southern Africa Energy Program (SAEP) supported projects across the renewable energy spectrum, including on- and off-grid solar, hydropower, transmission, and wind projects of varied sizes. SAEP provided advisory services to project developers, helping them secure funding, structure deals, and enhance project rollout. The program also collaborated with the European Union's Increased Access to Electricity and Renewable Energy Production Program to improve regulation and market expansion. SAEP facilitated the implementation of a project performance-balanced scorecard to prioritize and monitor the performance of over 200 projects at ZESCO. The program also provided a technical advisor to ZESCO to assist in integrating independent power producers and variable renewable resources into the grid more effectively. SAEP developed an innovative system scheduling process that recognizes environmental constraints on generation and forecasts variable solar generation.