The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) has approved a $1-million grant to launch the first phase of a Green Mini-Grids (GMG) Market Development Program (MDP) which will be implemented by the SE4ALL Africa Hub in coordination with SE4ALL’s Clean Energy Mini-Grid High Impact Opportunity stakeholder group.
The program is aimed at removing or reducing the market barriers that exist on a regional scale and strengthen the ecosystem for the emergence of a thriving GMG sector in sub-Saharan Africa.
The program will support the efforts of relevant stakeholders such as governments and project developers in creating a favorable environment for scaling up mini-grid investment on the continent and expanding energy access to underserved communities through GMGs.
Green mini-grids are village- or district- level electrical distribution networks that serve the needs of communities too distant to be economically connected to the grid in the near to medium term, but densely populated enough to offer economies of scale in power delivery compared with individual home systems.
International Energy Agency estimates have it that 40% of the investment required to achieve universal electricity access by 2030 can most economically be achieved through mini-grids.
The MDP is a multi-phased program which includes generating market intelligence on the GMG opportunity in sub-Saharan Africa; promotion of linkages between relevant stakeholders; strengthening the capacity of developers to operationalize GMG business models; promoting a sound policy and regulatory environment; coordinating a regional approach to mini-grid quality assurance; and engaging project financiers while supporting the development of suitable financial solutions.