TO THE MEMBERS OF THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than three million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations, and dedicated to promoting, protecting, and defending America’s free enterprise system, supports H.R. 2548, the “Electrify Africa Act of 2014.”
With no additional expenditure by the U.S. government, the Electrify Africa Act would encourage the development of new infrastructure to provide access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa. More than 70 percent of the people in the region have no access to electricity, with grave consequences. Indoor air pollution from wood and dung burning stoves kills more than 3 million people per year—more than AIDS and malaria combined. By promoting reliable access to energy, this bill would help remove one of the continent’s most significant barriers to development.
Given that sub-Saharan Africa is home to a number of the fastest growing economies in the world, this bill has the potential to generate significant new economic opportunities for U.S. companies and the workers they employ. Broader access to electricity would allow a larger middle class to emerge, providing opportunities for U.S. companies. Appropriately, the bill places an emphasis on the role of the private sector as it promotes access to electricity. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that implementation of the Electrify Africa Act would save the United States $86 million from 2014-2019.
The Electrify Africa Act would direct the administration to create a comprehensive strategy to help increase access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa. It would direct U.S. agencies involved in economic development to use existing tools to pursue this goal, and it would direct the Treasury Department to work with the World Bank and the African Development Bank to increase electrification investments in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Chamber urges you to support H.R. 2548, the “Electrify Africa Act of 2014.”
Sincerely,
R. Bruce Josten