CoAction Global, The Rockefeller Foundation to Expand Mission 300 Fellowship Program to Speed Electrification in Africa
March 5, 2026
To expand electrification to 300 million Africans by 2030, fellowships in countries’ Compact Delivery and Monitoring Units will grow from 14 to 22.
WASHINGTON | March 5, 2026 — In support of the World Bank Group and African Development Bank effort to connect more than 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030, a total of 22 African energy professionals will soon be deployed as Mission 300 Fellows working in countries’ Compact Delivery and Monitoring Units (CDMUs). The Mission 300 Fellowship (“M300 Fellowship”) program is a core initiative of nonprofit impact accelerator CoAction Global, which connects local leaders and ideas with global capabilities to advance economic opportunity, drive community investment, and convene partnerships.
The support of The Rockefeller Foundation, with its public charity RF Catalytic Capital’s Mission 300 Accelerator, will allow CoAction Global to grow its initial cohort of 14 Fellows to a total of 22, deepening the program’s reach and impact. The Rockefeller Foundation announced support for the expansion of the fellowship during Mission 300 Day at the 2026 Africa Energy Indaba in Cape Town.
Out of 3,000 applications from nearly every African country, Fellows are already working in CDMUs in Burundi, Chad, Ivory Coast, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Madagascar, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger, Republic of Congo, Senegal, and Sierra Leone.
“M300 Fellows represent some of the brightest emerging leaders on the African continent, drawing on their lived experiences, with nuance and innovation, to address longstanding electrification challenges in some of the most complex environments. Although they have only been deployed to CDMUs for a few months, their significant contributions already demonstrate that this model works. CoAction Global is deeply grateful for the support of The Rockefeller Foundation’s RF Catalytic Capital, as well as Energy Corps, which enables us to nurture the next generation of African energy leaders. This is what accelerating impact looks like,” said Stephanie Kumah, CoAction Global’s Operations and Partnerships Manager for the M300 Fellowship.
With the expansion of the fellowship program, based on growing demand and an extremely strong pool of African candidates, an additional four fellows will be deployed to assist with overall efforts to drive electrification progress, and an initial four Clean Cooking Fellows will be deployed to help strengthen institutional capacity to develop investable project pipelines, expanding access to clean, modern cooking methods.
The Rockefeller Foundation with RFCC’s Mission 300 Accelerator and the nonprofit, Energy Corps, are supporting CoAction Global in developing the cohort of Clean Cooking Fellows to help further efforts to scale modern cooking technologies in sub-Saharan Africa. The Clean Cooking Accelerator Initiative was launched by The Rockefeller Foundation, Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, Clean Cooking Alliance, and Energy Corps during the International Energy Agency’s 2026 Ministerial in February.
“It’s clear these fellows are making a difference, helping cut through red tape and increasing the rate of electrification in their countries. We are proud to expand this program in support of Mission 300, so we can continue improving people’s lives and livelihoods by giving them the tools they need to thrive,” said William Asiko, Vice President of Africa at The Rockefeller Foundation.
Today, more than 730 million people still lack access to basic electricity, with an estimated 600 million living in Africa. This shortage hinders healthcare, education, digital inclusion, women and children empowerment, the creation of local jobs, building economic opportunity, and more. In addition, approximately one billion people in Africa rely on traditional fuels such as wood and charcoal, which significantly increases household air pollution for families, especially for women and children, and the associated health risks that cause more than 810,000 premature deaths every year in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Led by the World Bank and African Development Bank, Mission 300 is an ambitious initiative to combat energy poverty and unlock opportunity by expanding electricity to 300 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2030. During the Mission 300 Africa Energy Summit in January 2025, African government leaders endorsed the Dar es Salaam Energy Declaration, which affirms their joint commitment to advance critical reforms and actions across the energy sector to increase access to electricity and clean cooking, increase the share of renewable energy, and increase private capital mobilization.
Designed to support key gaps that will accelerate access to energy in each market, fellows have the unique opportunity to gain firsthand experience addressing pressing country needs while making meaningful contributions to the advancement of the energy sector in Africa. Examples of fellow engagement include:
- Supporting the development of CDMUs to guide operationalization, coordination, and performance tracking.
- Defining milestones, timelines, and reporting structures to ensure accountability and progress in implementing the compact.
- Meeting with key officials across the government to understand current operations and linkages to the country’s National Energy Compact.
- Coordinating across institutions and with multilateral banks, including the World Bank and African Development Bank.
Statements of Support
Regarding Mission 300 Fellows working in CDMUs in Lesotho and Liberia:
“Hope has been instrumental in supporting Lesotho in its Mission 300 National Energy Compact. Her fresh perspective and strategic thinking have been a strong addition to the team. She has moved on well with adaptability, professionalism and a collaborative approach that has enabled her to add value from the outset demonstrating the value addition for the [CoAction Global] support in propelling forward the Compact implementation.”
― Mr. Tankiso Phapano, Principal Secretary of the Lesotho Ministry of Energy
“The Mission 300 Fellowship Program represents a critical investment in Liberia’s human capacity for the energy sector. By empowering young professionals with the skills, exposure, and networks needed to drive reform and implementation, this initiative directly supports our national energy ambitions and accelerates progress toward universal access. Sharon has been very instrumental to the Ministry of Mines and Energy, providing technical support to the Department of Energy and supporting the early establishment and operational readiness of the Compact Delivery and Monitoring Unit (CDMU), which serves as Liberia’s core Mission 300 delivery mechanism.”
― Madam Joebarline Gbozee, Director, Bureau of Energy Planning, Research and Policy at the Ministry of Mines and Energy, Republic of Liberia
Regarding Mission 300 Fellows working in Chad and Liberia:
“Power shortages, transportation challenges, language barriers, and extreme weather conditions shape everyday work and mental energy in Chad… Seeing firsthand the daily impact of limited electricity access (power cuts, unsafe streets, heat) made me understand the urgency and human significance of the work we are doing as Mission 300 Fellows.”
― Placide Fakhigui Assana, Mission 300 Fellow working in Chad’s CDMU
“Where my grandmother lives in Zimunya, Zimbabwe, she does not have consistent access to electricity… I can see my grandma in the work that we’re doing. I can see my grandmother as we look at where the substations are located here in Liberia, as we look at the different places that independent power producers could develop projects and transmit energy.”
― Sharon Matongo, Mission 300 Fellow from Zimbabwe working in Liberia’s CDMU
CoAction Global Contact:
Samantha Kupferman, Director of External Relations
s.kupferman@coactionglobal.org; +1 202-215-9260
About CoAction Global
CoAction Global is an independent nonprofit impact accelerator providing a vital link between people and places to generate economic prosperity in some of the world’s most challenging contexts. As an operational catalyst, we connect local leadership and ideas with global capabilities to advance economic opportunity, drive community investment, and convene partnerships that propel sustainability, innovation and empowerment. For more information, please visit CoActionGlobal.org and follow us on LinkedIn @coaction-global-org.