Eastern Africa Region

Abstract

East Africa is one of the regions in Sub Saharan Africa and according to the United Nations (UN), consists of 20 nations. This chapter focuses on select countries in East Africa; specifically Tanzania and Kenya and analyses their experience with prepaid electricity metering. Tanzania and Kenya have electrification rates of 40% and 75% respectively. Prepaid metering was introduced in Tanzania in the year 1995, whilst Kenya introduced prepaid metering in 2009. The motive behind the introduction of prepaid meters in both nations was introducing upfront payment for electricity and minimising instances of incorrect billing. An added advantage was to enable the consumers to control their electricity usage and by extension their finances. Despite the roll-out of prepaid meters in Tanzania and Kenya, the prepaid electricity sectors still suffer from challenges such as meter bypassing, thefts, illegal connection, faulty gadgets, poor consumer education on how to use the metering system, and varying rates of units for the same amount (due to fuel price, foreign exchange & inflation). Smart meters are proffered as a mitigation measure to the challenges encountered by these countries as these meters enable near real-time monitoring of electricity usage over time, are relatively easy to use, and help in detecting meter tampering or bypassing.