Proposing a Paradigm Shift in Rural Electrification Investments in Sub-Saharan Africa through Agriculture

Almost one billion people in the world still do not have access to electricity. Most of them live in rural areas of the developing world. Access to electricity in the rural areas of Sub-Saharan Africa is only 28%, roughly 600 million people. The financing of rural electrification is challenging and, in order to accomplish higher private sector investments, new innovative business models have to be developed. In this paper, a new approach in the financing of microgrid electrification activities is proposed and investigated. In this approach, agriculture related businesses take the lead in the electrification activities of the surrounding communities. It is shown that the high cost of rural electrification can be met through the increased value of locally produced products, and cross-subsidization can take place in order to decrease the cost of household electrification. The approach is implemented in a case study in Rwanda, through which the possibility of local agricultural cooperatives leading electrification activities is demonstrated.

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Promoting Rural Electrification in Sub-Saharan Africa: Least-Cost Modelling of Decentralized Energy-Water-Food Systems: Case Study of St. Rupert Mayer, Zimbabwe

Springer Proceedings in Energy - Africa-EU Renewable Energy Research and Innovation Symposium 2018 (RERIS 2018) ◽

10.1007/978-3-319-93438-9_6 ◽

2018 ◽

pp. 71-89

Author(s):

J. Winklmaier ◽

S. Bazan Santos

Keyword(s):

Food Systems ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Rural Electrification ◽

Cost Modelling ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Decentralized Energy

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Mini-Grids for the Sustainable Electrification of Rural Areas in Sub-Saharan Africa: Assessing the Potential of KeyMaker Models

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13236350 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (23) ◽

pp. 6350

Author(s):

Andrea Cabanero ◽

Lars Nolting ◽

Aaron Praktiknjo

Keyword(s):

Rural Areas ◽

Business Models ◽

Value Added ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Cocoa Bean ◽

Base Case ◽

Financial Viability ◽

Grid Systems ◽

Percentage Points ◽

Sub Saharan

Solar hybrid mini-grid systems possess the potential to substantially support electrification in sub-Saharan Africa. While their technical reliability has been proven, their financial viability is achieved only by heavy subsidization as of now. Due to the growing importance of results-based financing, we ask whether newly developed business models leveraging on the value added of electricity supply in rural areas (such as the KeyMaker Model) bare the potential to substantially reduce amount of grants required to finance the initial capital investment and thus contribute to a sustainable form of development. The principle of the KeyMaker Model is based on utilizing the locally supplied mini-grid electricity to establish a local agro-processing project, the revenues of which are an additional income stream for the mini-grid operator, while the project creates an end-market for the local farmers to sell their produce. We have developed two scenarios (without and with KeyMaker Model) for four rural villages in Nigeria as a case study to scientifically assess the potential of KeyMaker Models. We simulated and optimized the mini-grid systems using the software tool HOMER. We then assessed their financial viability. Our analysis demonstrates grant finance requirements ranging from 82% to 99% of the total investment for the base-case mini-grid projects without consideration of the KeyMaker Model. We find that a well-selected KeyMaker Model such as cocoa bean processing reduced the grant requirement by 68 percentage points, while processes based on maize, palm oil and cassava processing achieved reductions of 36, 26 and 8 percentage points, respectively. Hence, we conclude that the value added by the introduction of new local business models bares the potential to reduce grant requirements for the socially and economically necessary electrification across the Global South.

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Reducing the burden of rural water supply through greywater reuse: a case study from northern Malawi

Water Science & Technology Water Supply ◽

10.2166/ws.2017.004 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 17 (4) ◽

pp. 1088-1096 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Evan Newcomer ◽

Courtney Boyd ◽

Laban Nyirenda ◽

Emmanuel Opong ◽

Shannon Marquez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Rural Areas ◽

Geographic Location ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

World Health ◽

E Coli ◽

Colony Forming Units ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Health Organization ◽

Greywater Reuse

Greywater reuse has potential for non-potable applications that conserve freshwater resources in water-stressed areas especially in sub-Saharan Africa. The feasibility of reusing greywater for domestic activities in a rural area of Malawi, Africa, was evaluated from microbiological and public acceptance perspectives. Median Escherichia coli concentrations for eight domestic greywater sources (handwashing, laundry, runoff from a tap apron, bathing, cleaning a home/kitchen, cleaning a water collection container, washing plates and soaking vegetables) ranged from 100 to >20,000 colony forming units (cfu)/100 ml. Twenty-four of 47 greywater samples tested (51%) met the World Health Organization guideline for unrestricted use of greywater for irrigation. Pertinently, 80% (4/5) and 60% (3/5) of greywater samples from handwashing stations and bathing had E. coli less than the WHO guideline. Users reported greatest acceptance of reusing greywater for growing food and washing clothes, especially when the greywater source was bathing. Acceptance was closely tied to a household's economic standing, geographic location, and first-hand knowledge of reusing greywater. Greywater reuse practices in rural areas, especially targeting bathing water as suitable from bacteriological and user perception criteria, can help mitigate the impacts of water stress in sub-Saharan Africa.

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MAKING A LIVELIHOOD IN (AND BEYOND) THE AFRICAN CITY: THE EXPERIENCE OF ZIMBABWE

Africa ◽

10.1017/s0001972011000489 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 81 (4) ◽

pp. 588-605 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Deborah Potts

Keyword(s):

Rural Areas ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Strong Impact ◽

Circular Migration ◽

African City ◽

Migration Patterns ◽

History Of ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

The City

ABSTRACTThe formal labour markets and economies of many cities in sub-Saharan Africa have been very weak for decades and this has led to significant adaptations in the nature of the livelihoods of most urban households. The lack of formal and reasonably paid jobs has also had a strong impact on population growth in cities, although this is often not recognized. This article reviews some of these trends and illustrates them with case study material from Harare, Zimbabwe. There, many urban residents have increasingly struggled to get by and their perceptions of the city and their future within it show a strong negative trend. Links to rural areas and the possibility of making livelihoods there in the future have become more important. These adaptations build on the long history of rural–urban linkages in sub-Saharan Africa but contemporary practices, including patterns of circular migration, are influenced by the harsh realities of African urban economies. The decisions and future plans of some migrants may not, therefore, fit with their aspirations – and the degree and nature of this mismatch are influenced by factors such as gender, age and position in the urban household, and links to rural areas. It is suggested that it helps to analyse the consequent migration patterns in terms of a framework in which migrants’ decisions to stay in the city or leave it are conceptualized as either willing or reluctant.

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How Women Entrepreneurs Impact

10.4018/978-1-7998-4646-8.ch009 ◽

2022 ◽

pp. 217-236

Keyword(s):

Rural Women ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Women Entrepreneurs ◽

Poverty Reduction ◽

Local Level ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Rural Setting ◽

Economic Role ◽

Sub Saharan

In this chapter, a case study of women entrepreneurs provides the avenue to understand the challenges of poverty reduction and social change at the grassroots level, particularly in rural areas. This case is first among three cases that are worth noting in this book because this case exemplifies women entrepreneurs in a rural setting, where they mobilize groups of women to transform their household and community, to help impoverished Tanzanian rural women increase earnings and autonomy through nonfarm business. From these perspectives and lessons garnered, there is a tacit but general agreement that women's economic role at the local level is critical for development and that women entrepreneurs are a great resource in the Sub-Saharan Africa region.

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Rural Electrification in Mozambique: Challenges and Opportunities

E3S Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/e3sconf/202129402004 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 294 ◽

pp. 02004

Author(s):

Milagre Manhique ◽

Dominique Barchiesi ◽

Raed Kouta

Keyword(s):

Renewable Energy ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Renewable Energy Sources ◽

International Energy Agency ◽

Electricity Sector ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Energy Sources ◽

Rural Electrification ◽

World Population ◽

Sub Saharan

The International Energy Agency states that access to electricity is an essential condition for sustainable human development, however, it is estimated that approximately 22% of the world population (about 1.6 billion people) does not have access to electricity, a significant part of these people live in rural areas of developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, despite the fact that Africa has enormous potential in renewable and non-renewable energy sources. In Mozambique, approximately 50% of the population does not have access to electricity due to the fact that 66.6% of the population lives in rural areas, where the rate of access to electricity is even worse, paradoxically, Mozambique has a significant potential for renewable energy sources equivalent to 23 TW, this potential when combined with factors such as commitment to ensuring access to electricity for all, forecast of population growth and electricity demand, generates huge investment and long term business opportunities in the electricity sector, however, there are economic, social and cultural challenges that constitute uncertainties that should be considered in the decision-making process for investment in rural electrification infrastructure in the specific context of Mozambique and Sub-Saharan Africa in general. This article aims to discuss the possibilities that Mozambique has to guarantee access to electricity for all by 2030 (emanating from United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7) emphasizing land use plans and education for rural electrification benefits through the use of renewable energy sources.

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