Open Africa Power 2022: Call for applications

Enel Foundation and Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) are excited to launch the call for applications for the 2022 edition of Open Africa Power, the programme that, since 2018, provides a cohort of young energy professionals with a complete set of technical, regulatory and business skills needed to trigger a sustainable energy future for all in Africa. This year the programme will engage up to 150 African students and over 240 alumni, with at least 50 percent women, in a series of professional development and leadership activities provided in partnership with top academic institutions in Italy and Africa. 

Open Africa Power 2022 will comprise of online and residential modules from academic institutions such as Strathmore University, the University of Cape Town, Politecnico di Torino, Politecnico di Milano, SDA Bocconi, Florence School of Regulation, and Venice International University.

Initiated by Enel Foundation in 2018, and co-managed by SEforALL for the 2022 edition, Open Africa Power is designed to equip a new generation of energy leaders with a holistic know-how of the electricity sector, so they can leave their mark in the public or private sector towards a clean energy future for Africa. 

“Open Africa Power is aimed at reaching young minds, young people and mostly women, and give everybody the opportunity to learn about energy, about power, and train them in order to include the brightest minds in this huge opportunity that Africa is undergoing right now,” commented Enel CEO and Enel Foundation Chairman Francesco Starace. 

Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All and Co-Chair of UN-Energy, said, “We must look to the future for solutions to challenges that we have had with us for decades. To do this, we must create opportunities for women and youth. This partnership between SEforALL and the Open Africa Power programme aims to leverage the platform to create energy leaders of tomorrow, who will benefit their local communities and who will stand as global inspiration.”

Find out more on Open Africa Power from the students themselves here.

Programme Structure

Digital African Module (May – June): this 8-week module will explore the fundamentals of the global electricity sector through the lens of the Sustainable Development Goals. It will cover the following areas:

• Renewables technology, regulation, economics;
• Networks technology, regulation, economics;
• ICT digitalization of the electricity industry.

Regulation for SDG7 Online Course (May – October): the 5-month course will enable the participants to gain a comprehensive vision of how to design the appropriate policy and regulatory frameworks needed to ensure sustainable energy for all. Successful completion of this course is required to be selected for the Italian Module.

Italian Module (October – November): the module will take place in Italy (decision subject to the evolution of the COVID situation). During this 2-week residential module, the top performers of the first 2 modules (selected also on the basis of their capstone projects) will explore the new frontiers of the electricity sector and experience first-hand innovation. They will be called to actively interact with prestigious academic partners and research representatives, meet with government, business, and non-profit leaders; engage in a dialogue around issues of Africa’s clean energy future; and visit sites of innovative electricity technologies.

Give back module: upon completion of the Italian module, alumni will be involved in teaching activities related to Enel Foundation education initiatives in Africa.

Eligibility Criteria

The Open Africa Power selection process is an open, merit-based competition. The application period opens on 11 February 2022 and closes on 25 March 2022.

To be eligible, candidates must meet the following criteria:

• Be between the ages of 24 and 35 by 3 May 2022;
• Be a citizen of an African country;
• Currently reside in an African country or are planning to relocate to Africa by the end of 2022;
• Be eligible to travel to Italy. All candidates are invited to check well in advance the procedure applicable to their specific case;
• Be a graduate from or current student (having an admission letter is also acceptable) of a PhD, MSc, LLM, MPP or MBA degree. Undergraduate students or people who are not at least enrolled in a master’s degree are not eligible for this programme. One of the two degrees (Bachelor or Master’s) must be from an African university;
• Have competencies and a demonstrated interest to pursue a career – in private or public sector – in the electricity space at large;
• Be fully proficient in English;
• Be willing to promote gender equality and women's empowerment within and beyond the programme.

To encourage and elevate more women in the energy sector, Enel Foundation and SEforALL will ensure that 50 percent of the Open Africa Power 2022 participants are women.

How to apply

Applications are to be filed through our dedicated platform exclusively, using the verification code (OAPF2022). We highly invite you to start and complete your application on both Google Chrome and a desktop environment for the best results possible in terms of stability and reliability of the platform. Please click on the link and copy-paste the code written above in order to begin the process.

Applicants must provide:

• A copy of their CV (in PDF format);
• Copy of their Bachelor’s and Master’s degree certificates (plus eventual MBA/PhD certificates) AND academic transcripts (in PDF format);
• A copy of their Passport (in PDF format);
• A motivation letter (max 700 words, in PDF format);
• Three reference letters from industry, academia and/or civil servant representatives (in PDF format).

The application process begins with a registration form that allows applicants to sign up by entering their contact details. They will then receive a confirmation email redirecting them to the actual application form, which is divided into stages. At any given stage, if the required document is not uploaded, the system will prevent the applicant from advancing to the next stage. To successfully complete the process, all the documents listed in the bullet points above are required. Applications can be saved and resumed at a later stage. However, once an application is submitted, it cannot be amended. Therefore, please make sure your submission meets the requirements.

Interested candidates acknowledge that by submitting their application they will share personal data and authorize the treatment of personal data only for the scope of this programme. Without such authorization, the application will not be submitted. For full information please read the privacy note.