TANZANIA, June 16 -- I still remember the faint glow of a kerosene lamp in my childhood home. Growing up in rural Kenya, electricity seemed like a distant aspiration.

It appeared to be reserved for those living in cities, not for children like myself, who strained to read beneath dim flames after sunset. Firewood served as our primary source of cooking fuel and the radio only functioned when we managed to find batteries.

These are not simply childhood memories, but daily reminders of limitations that shaped our potential, our hope and our progress.

That early experience instilled in me a deeply held belief. Africas energy future must be imagined and shaped by Africans themselves. It must be based on what works in our context, not on ex...