The Africa Centre for Energy Policy is a Ghana-based nonprofit that advocates on energy, social, and economic policy with a focus on environmentalism. The group advocates greater corporate and governmental transparency and examines what it calls “the connection between resource extraction and inclusive sustainable development.” The group supports the critical race theory-influenced concept of equity, stating part of its research involves “working to ensure equitable distribution of resource wealth.”  ^{1  2}

The Africa Centre for Energy Policy is partnered with the left-of-center Ford Foundation on an initiative entitled The Extractive Industry and Climate Change Governance Fund. The Fund was initially seeded with $3 million from the Ford Foundation as part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  ³

Background

The Africa Centre for Energy Policy is a research and advocacy organization based in Ghana. The group advocates for greater corporate and governmental transparency, as well as examining “the connection between resource extraction and inclusive sustainable development.”  ¹

One of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy’s “thematic areas” is the critical race theory-influenced concept of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). According to the Centre, it “prioritizes the gender dimension of every program and insists on securing equitable participation of women in every aspect of its work, including its staffing policy.”  ²

The group also researches and advocates for environmental policy, such as through its climate change and energy transition areas of focus. The Africa Centre for Energy Policy advocates for an increase in weather-dependent energy resources in Africa, such as wind and solar. The group also advocates against the use of wood as fuel or for charcoal production.  ⁴

Activities

The Africa Centre for Energy Policy is partnered with the left-of-center Ford Foundation on an initiative entitled The Extractive Industry and Climate Change Governance Fund. The Fund was initially seeded with $3 million from the Ford Foundation as part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Extractive Industry and Climate Change Governance Fund seeks to facilitate the transition to weather-dependent energy, government transparency on how public resources are being used, and stronger protections for civil liberties.  ³

The Africa Centre for Energy Policy also promotes the Future of Energy Conference, which is an annual conference that seeks to “drive stakeholder collaboration towards an inclusive and sustainable energy future for Africa.”  ⁵

Funding

In 2024, the Ford Foundation gave a $1.2 million grant for a “just energy transition in Africa” to the Africa Centre for Energy Policy to be paid out over nearly four years. Apart from that grant, the Ford Foundation has given a total of $4,915,000 to the Africa Centre for Energy Policy between 2016 and 2024.  ⁶

In 2024, the Foundation to Promote Open Society, one of the grantmaking institutions in the Soros Network, gave $500,000 to the Africa Centre for Energy Policy.  ⁷

Other funding partners of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy include Oxfam; the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the U.K. government; and Diakonia.  ⁸

People

Benjamin Boakye is the executive director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy. Boakye has also been a consultant for the World Bank Group and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).  ⁹

In 2025, Ikal Ang’elei was listed as the chair of the board of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy. Ang’elei is the co-founder and director of Friends of Lake Turkana.  ¹⁰

1. “The Organisation.” Home -, January 12, 2024. https://acep.africa/the-organisation/. 
2. “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Resource Governance.” Home -, March 20, 2023. https://acep.africa/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-in-resource-governance/. 
3. “EICCG Fund.” Home -, June 9, 2025. https://acep.africa/eiccg-fund/ 
4. “Climate Change and Energy Transition.” Home -, March 20, 2023. https://acep.africa/climate-change-and-energy-transition/. 
5. “Future of Energy Conference.” Home -, September 8, 2025. https://acep.africa/fec-2025/. 
6. “Grants Database.” Ford Foundation. Accessed November 29, 2025. https://www.fordfoundation.org/work/our-grants/awarded-grants/grants-database/?search=Africa%2BCentre%2Bfor%2BEnergy%2BPolicy. 
7. “Awarded Grants.” Open Society Foundations. Accessed November 29, 2025. https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/grants/past?filter_keyword=Africa+Centre+for+Energy+Policy&grant_id=OR2024-94756. 
8. “Our Partners.” Home -, January 12, 2024. https://acep.africa/our-partners/. 
9. “Our Team.” Home -, January 12, 2024. https://acep.africa/team/. 
10. “Governing Board.” Home -, January 12, 2024. https://acep.africa/governing-board/.