Afri-can Do

Seeking to capitalize on the potential of renewable energy sources, 10 African nations are collaborating to increase their combined geothermal power generation to 1,000 megawatts by 2020. Geothermal power yields electricity by trapping steam released by water reservoirs deep inside the Earth. It is a clean and reliable energy source, and the United National Environment Programme estimates that together, the 10 countries in question (Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia) could produce up to 7,000 megawatts of electricity through geothermal power. To date, though, only Kenya produces geothermal energy -- and just 57 megawatts of it. The U.S. State Department, Trade and Development Agency, and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation have pledged to help fund the cost of establishing a geothermal energy infrastructure in the African nations.