State of biofuel development in sub-Saharan Africa: How far sustainable?

Abstract Extensive usage of fossil fuels in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has led to increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that might adversely affect numerous sustainable development goals. However, biofuels produced from energy crops are carbon-neutral because the plants assimilated the CO2 released subsequently in the combustion process, therewith reducing GHG emissions. Numerous studies indicate that the carbon debt can be compensated if the total GHG emissions of biofuels produced and used are lower than the life cycle assessment (LCA) based emissions of fossil fuels being displaced. However, before selecting feedstocks for household- or even industrial-scale biofuel production, it is essential to assess how biofuel feedstock cultivation affects local or regional socioeconomic conditions as well as food insecurity and biodiversity. It is evident that appropriate initiatives in SSA can promote local biofuel production, trigger the establishment of biofuel markets while uplifting the livelihood of the affected population. In addition, biofuel import dependencies are reduced, poverty is mitigated, and the environmental footprint can be improved. Socioeconomic and ecological parameters mainly govern biofuel sustainability and resilience of the local and regional bioenergy sectors. At the same time, technology constraints such as the high extraction cost for oils from jojoba might hamper the biofuel establishment and sustainable development in the SSA region. Nevertheless, available strategies to overcome technological constraints and actual socioeconomic and environmental conflicts are critically discussed within the context of the SSA region.