EnDev Innovation Window projects for Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda

Promotion of Productive Use of Energy (PUE) consumer financing through Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) – Kenya

The goal of the project 'Promotion of PUE consumer financing through VSLAs' implemented by GIZ in Kenya was to promote and finance solar and cookstoves with Productive Use of Energy (PUE) technologies, through table banking, village loans and saving groups.

To reach this goal, the challenge of high initial cost of PUE systems needed to be mitigated by stimulating appropriate and affordable PUE consumer financing. Therefore, the project mainly focused on integrating promotion and consumer financing for PUE technologies in emerging digital platforms. These platforms target, aggregate and build the capacity of informal groups and enterprises, largely dominated by women and youths, to access PUE financing through digital platforms. This will provide lessons for financial institutions and intermediaries on how to integrate PUE consumer financing in financial services for groups. 

Among other results, the project identified six PUE business cases, facilitated three digital platforms to include consumer financing for PUE technologies and engaged three financial intermediaries.

Cooling as a Service (CaaS) – Rwanda

This project, implemented by GIZ, aimed at piloting an innovative solar-powered cold storage technology and business model in cooperation with the local private sector in Rwanda. 

Solar-powered cold storage has the potential to reduce up to 50% food waste at market sites and thereby benefit local market sellers, wholesalers and farmers. The solution aimed to address the lack of financing available to market participants through the provision of a pay-as-you-go financing model, thus enabling them to reduce food waste at market sites. Market sellers, as well as wholesalers and farmers, are able to place their products in plastic crates at market sites, paying an affordable per-crate-per-day of cold storage, which extends the shelf-life from two days up to 21 days.

This was done by piloting the technology application, providing business development support and technical training and raising awareness in postharvest management. 

The ultimate goal is not only to reduce food waste but allow for financial gains and more efficient planning for food sellers, potentially impacting Rwanda’s wider horticultural value chain and promoting the advancement of low-carbon post-harvest storage solutions in Rwanda. 

Among other results, two cold strorage units were installed at marketplaces while for two others potential to be installed through an alternative business case (aggregators/exporters) was explored. 237 people were provided with access to off-grid PUE, out of which 215 were women. Seven people were directly employed as a result of the project.

Promoting e-cooking market intelligence and supply chain establishment in rural Uganda – Uganda

The E-cooking Pilot Project in Uganda implemented by GIZ aimed to build on the experience of previous and on-going market studies, to understand domestic cooking energy use and compatibility of energy-efficient electric cooking appliances to the Ugandan context. 

The pilot expanded baseline e-cooking usage and consumption studies to 30 grid connected households in two new regions of Uganda to obtain further market insights into the potential for transition to e-cooking, tested product fit of different efficient Electric Pressure Cookers (EPCs), including electricity smart metering to meet the needs of Ugandan households, as well as supported the establishment of key supplier value chains that can bring these e-cooking solutions closer to the end users.

The project facilitated the sale of over 1,000 EPCs to households, reaching at least 5,000 people with access to clean and efficient cooking technologies.