Hydropower in Africa – Data Set

Summary

Hydropower in Africa Data Set

This data set activity gives students authentic energy data from Ethiopia and Tanzania to analyze hydropower trends from 2000 to 2023. Using graphs sourced from Our World In Data and the IEA, students compare two African countries with very different energy trajectories: Ethiopia, which has remained heavily reliant on hydropower, and Tanzania, which has shifted toward natural gas as hydropower’s share of its electricity mix has declined. The activity asks students to describe trends, identify quantitative evidence from the graphs, and draw conclusions about how energy systems evolve over time.

Five analysis questions guide students through quantitative description, system-level interpretation, evaluation of single-source dependence, and prediction of future energy trajectories. Students consider what factors might shape Ethiopia’s hydropower-heavy system over the next ten to twenty years, including climate variability, drought risk, population growth, and policy decisions. The activity builds skills in data literacy, graph interpretation, evidence-based reasoning, and systems thinking.

This data set works well in middle school and high school environmental science, AP Environmental Science, geography, and STEM classrooms. Teachers can use it as an in-class data analysis activity, a homework assignment, or a standalone data literacy practice that connects to broader units on renewable energy, electricity systems, or African geography.

Extend the Lesson: Use this data set within the full Hydropower in Africa lesson, alongside the video and research project. Connect students to the Introduction to Hydropower lesson for background on hydropower technology, or to the Introduction to Energy Access / Energy Poverty lesson for context on why country-level energy decisions matter.