Opportunities and risks of bioenergy in Africa

Abstract

The use of biomass for energy provision in Africa has a long history, as wood-fuels (charcoal, fuel-wood) are traditionally used since long time. Current developments foresee also the production and use of modern bioenergy for electricity, heat and transport applications. Both, traditional and modern bioenergy pose opportunities and risks for sustainable development in Africa. The present chapter describes these opportunities and risks by summarising the contributions of the book Bioenergy for Sustainable Development in Africa which was elaborated as a result of the COMPETE network.