In 2022, electricity consumption in Guinea-Bissau was just 38 kWh per person—about 1% of the global average of 3,794 kWh per person, or roughly one hundred times lower. Reported low-carbon electricity generation was zero kWh per person, indicating no recorded contribution from clean sources such as solar, wind or nuclear. The supplied figures do not provide a breakdown of fossil-fuel generation or electricity imports, so their respective contributions cannot be determined. Such limited electricity availability can constrain healthcare, education, refrigeration and business activity, while making electrification and future digital development harder.

Is Electricity Growing in Guinea-Bissau?

The latest figures do not show sustained growth in electricity consumption per person. Guinea-Bissau’s 2022 consumption of 38 kWh per person was 6 kWh below its previous record of 44 kWh in 2016—a decline of about 14% from that peak. This comparison does not establish whether consumption fell every year, but it does show that the earlier record had not been regained. Low-carbon generation also remained stagnant: the 2022 figure of zero kWh per person matched the recorded low-carbon high in 2000. This lack of progress is concerning given the need for much greater electricity availability.

Suggestions

Guinea-Bissau should prioritize solar electricity through village mini-grids, rooftop systems and larger projects, supported by storage and stronger electricity networks. Relevant examples include South Africa, which generated about 20 TWh of solar electricity, and tropical places such as Vietnam and Brazil, which generated about 21 TWh and 85 TWh respectively. Their experience can inform project delivery, financing and workforce training, although their generation totals should not be treated as targets for Guinea-Bissau. Wind could also contribute where local resource assessments support it, drawing lessons from Brazil’s approximately 111 TWh of wind generation. Nuclear should be considered within long-term regional electricity planning and cooperation: South Africa’s roughly 12 TWh of nuclear generation illustrates its contribution to clean electricity in Africa. Together, solar and potential regional nuclear development could support growing electricity demand while reducing reliance on fossil fuels and their climate and air-pollution impacts.

History

The supplied historical information shows low-carbon electricity generation at zero kWh per person in both 2000 and 2022, with no improvement between those recorded benchmarks. However, no year-by-year changes in generation were included beneath the historical-data instructions, so it is not possible to describe developments by decade or identify individual increases and declines. The available evidence therefore points to an absence of recorded low-carbon progress at those two endpoints, rather than establishing a complete annual history. Building a meaningful clean-electricity supply would represent an important new chapter for Guinea-Bissau.

Electricity Imports and Exports

Balance of Trade