By Fatima Saka
Lagos, Nigeria — An Associate Professor of Economics at Denison University, Dr Fadhel Kaboub, has cautioned African countries against adopting nuclear energy, describing it as a costly and dangerous “false solution” that could deepen the continent’s economic dependency.
Kaboub gave the warning while speaking virtually as a guest lecturer at a media sensitisation workshop on the dangers of nuclear energy, held in Lagos and organised by the Renevlyn Development Initiative with support from Tipping Point North South.
He argued that the growing push for nuclear power across Africa was less about addressing electricity shortages and more about preserving global geopolitical and economic dominance.
“The debate around nuclear energy in Africa is not fundamentally about solving Africa’s energy crisis,” Kaboub said. “It is about maintaining systems of technological dependency, financial extraction and geopolitical control.”
The economist likened the trend to historical patterns of economic domination, including colonialism, structural adjustment programmes and debt dependency, warning that Africa risks becoming the “last frontier” for a struggling global nuclear industry.
According to him, major powers such as the United States, Russia, China, France, South Korea and Japan are actively promoting nuclear technology projects on the continent due to Africa’s projected population growth and market potential.
Kaboub questioned why Africa, despite its vast renewable energy resources, was being encouraged to invest in what he described as “the slowest, most expensive and most centralised energy system imaginable.”
Citing data from the International Renewable Energy Agency, he said the continent could generate up to 1,000 times its projected energy needs from renewable sources within 15 years, yet receives only about one per cent of global renewable energy financing.
He further argued that nuclear energy cannot be considered clean, noting that the entire value chain—from uranium mining to waste disposal—poses significant environmental and ecological risks.
Kaboub stressed that nuclear projects require long development timelines and are ill-suited to Africa’s urgent needs, with over 600 million people lacking electricity and nearly one billion relying on unsafe cooking systems.
“Africa does not have 10 to 20 years to wait,” he said. “Energy poverty is happening now, and solutions must be immediate, accessible and sustainable.”
The don called for increased investment in renewable energy, green cooking infrastructure and continent-wide industrial strategies to drive inclusive growth.
He emphasised the importance of regional cooperation, noting that individual African economies are often too small to achieve industrialisation independently.
“Industrialisation cannot happen one country at a time because it requires economies of scale,” he said, urging the development of a unified continental industrial framework and negotiation platform.
Kaboub also criticised the structure of climate finance available to Africa, describing it as debt-driven and counterproductive.
“Why should Africa accumulate more debt for technologies that are slower, more expensive and less flexible than renewable options?” he queried.
He accused nuclear energy proponents of marketing the technology as a prestige project rather than a practical development solution.
“Development is not about displaying nuclear reactors as monuments to ambition, but about ensuring people can power homes, hospitals, farms and businesses,” he said.
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Kaboub maintained that Africa’s energy future should prioritise renewable systems that are decentralised, publicly controlled and economically empowering.
“The real question before Africa is not whether the continent will have energy, but who will own the energy systems,” he added.
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