As crucial U.N. climate change negotiations take place in Glasgow, Scotland, this week, seeking steep global emissions cuts to protect people and nature, many African nations — relatively tiny contributors to the problem — find themselves in an unusual position.
Sub-Saharan Africa has the world's lowest energy access rates and about 600 million people — half the population — still lacks access to electricity, according to the International Energy Agency.
What the fast-growing continent needs is clean, renewable energy to power its development, experts say — but with money short to fund green power and big deposits of fossil fuels still available, some Africans question why they should switch.