Years back, nuclear energy was a fancy option limited to the
industrialized world. In due course, nuclear could be an energy source for much
of Africa, where only South
Africa currently has a nuclear power plant.Governments
across the continent are devising development policies to become middle-income
countries in the medium term. Socioeconomic growth comes with a rise in energy
demand—and a need for a reliable and sustainable energy supply.
For
industrializing countries in need of a clean, reliable and cost-effective
source of energy, nuclear is an attractive option.
“Africa is hungry for energy, and nuclear power could be
part of the answer for an increasing number of countries,” says Mikhail
Chudakov, deputy director general and head of the Department of Nuclear Energy
at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), an international organisation
that promotes the peaceful use of nuclear technology.