The World Bank has approved $224.7 million to pay for African off-grid energy using solar in West Africa and the Sahel regions. This will include $150 million in credits and grants from the International Development Association (IDA) and a $74.7 million contingent recovery grant from the Clean Technology Fund. These off grid electricity funds hope to bring electricity to 1.7 million people. So far only 3% of households in West Africa and the Sahel are served by stand-alone solar home systems, and 208 million people in the sub-region do not have access to electricity. The Green Climate Fund is to provide €46.2 million in funding for solar-based mini-grids for rural electrification in Mali where 80% of the population in the…