Sun-Connect News’ Post

𝐈𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐫? By Harald Schützeichel, Sun-Connect News It cannot be said that the island state of #Madagascar is at the centre of the international #offgrid industry’s attention. However, a lively off-grid sector has been developing here for several years. It is therefore important to realise that the The World Bank is currently causing serious damage to this local #solar industry. Of the country’s 26 million inhabitants, only 34% have access to electricity, and only 14% in rural areas. In recent years, several initiatives have been launched to improve this situation. In addition to IFC’s Scaling Solar programme, there are also programmes from various other international development organisations: (...) 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: https://lnkd.in/dbZc72Fr #SDG7 #SHS #solarproducts #ruralelectrification #marketdevelopment

𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐃𝐨 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰? by Wimbart For #startups in #Africa and across the globe, effective investor relations communication is critical to securing funding, maintaining solid relationships with their existing #investors, building credibility, and attracting new and long-term investors. As the continent continues to witness a surge in entrepreneurial activities, fostering transparent and engaging communication with potential investors becomes even more essential. African venture capitalists are recognised for their commitment to ‘going the extra mile’ in supporting their portfolio companies, offering invaluable assistance in partnership introductions, recruiting top-notch consultants, and identifying C-suite candidates, among other support. To execute this role effectively, VCs must develop a deep understanding of their portfolio companies’ current situations. Regular updates through investor communications provide a suitable platform for #VCs to proactively extend their networks, provide tailored support, and collaborate closely with startups to drive their growth and success in the dynamic African business landscape. 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞: https://lnkd.in/dTY-3Y76

𝐀 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐑𝐢𝐬𝐤 — 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐎𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 — 𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲: 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐔𝐧𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐖𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧’𝐬 𝐔𝐧𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤 by Dr. Kate Grantham, Maria Carolina Robino, Flaubert Mbiekop via NextBillion.net The first-ever International Day of Care and Support will be commemorated on October 29, 2023. On this milestone occasion, we want to draw the international development community’s attention to the interconnections between unpaid care work and the transition to low-carbon economies, where clean energy is a major driver. While the links between #cleanenergy and care work might not be evident at first, a report published last year by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) found that initiatives addressing these issues may be mutually reinforcing, even mutually dependent. On the one hand, social expectations that women must shoulder most of the responsibility for unpaid care work can hinder their engagement in clean energy businesses, initiatives and investments, and thwart the clean energy agenda. On the other hand, access to clean energy resources can potentially alter these long-standing social norms by reducing the drudgery of household care work and redistributing it more equitably between men and women. For example, a 2020 report by Oxfam shows that the introduction of certain time- and labour-saving clean energy technologies can be associated with men’s increased participation in care work, when they are coupled with targeted interventions to support this behavioral change. 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞: https://lnkd.in/d64b3Svf #solarenergy #offgrid #ruralelectrification #ruraldevelopment

𝐔𝐧𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥: 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐠𝐫𝐢𝐝 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 by Energy 4 Impact Across the vast rural landscapes of #Africa, millions of people continue to live without #electricity. This persistent energy deficit reinforces socio-economic inequalities, hindering progress for countless communities. It is estimated that this energy gap results in annual GDP losses of 2% to 4%, undermining economic growth, jobs and investment. In their 2022 analysis, the International Energy Agency (IEA) underscores that extending national #grids represents the “least costly and most prudent” option for providing #electricityaccess to approximately 45% of those who currently lack it. However, while #gridexpansion and densification are vital components of African governments’ efforts to improve #energyaccess in under-served rural areas, these projects often grapple with a common challenge: low demand. 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞: https://lnkd.in/dWUmhMtG #ruralelectrification #ruraldevelopment #offgrid #ruralsolutions #PUE

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐄𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢-𝐆𝐫𝐢𝐝 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞?: 𝐀 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 — 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚 𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫 by Tombo Banda, Charles Sweetland, Faisal Olanipekun via NextBillion.net #Minigrids have emerged as a viable technology to accelerate #accesstoelectricity in sub-Saharan #Africa. However, for mini-grids to become sustainable and scalable commercially, profitability must improve. That’s why the Mini-Grid Innovation Lab, established by CrossBoundary Group Advisory and The Rockefeller Foundation in 2018, works with mini-grid developers to identify and test innovative prototypes that improve the #businessmodel. As the prototypes generate results, the Lab shares evidence of their impact, and works closely with partners — developers, governments and funders — to scale these prototypes across participating developers and markets. So far, the Lab has tested 11 innovations with 27 developers in nine countries across 118 sites. 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞: https://lnkd.in/dms2vQ-f #energyaccess #ruralelectrification #ruraldevelopment #offgrid #ruralsolutions