Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund
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The Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund is seeking applications for its Innovation Fund Program to support innovations in clean cooking and productive use of energy.

The Innovation Fund, a US$1.2 million facility, is a component of Renewable Energy and Adaptation to Climate Technologies (REACT) that aims to catalyze the private sector to develop new or scale innovative and catalytic approaches to address the low access to affordable and efficient technologies.

Through the fund, technical and financial support will be provided to existing enterprises that are sufficiently developed to address affordability and accessibility of clean cooking, and productive use energy technologies.

The Fund builds on AECF’s Renewable Energy and Adaptation to Climate Technologies (REACT) initiative, which was launched to support the private sector to develop and expand its clean energy technologies to Africa’s rural communities.

Objectives

• To support the private sector to commercialize existing innovative products and business models that are sufficiently developed to address affordability and accessibility of clean cooking, and productive use energy technologies.
• To offer financial support tailored to the needs of eligible projects while attracting additional resources in matching funds.

Focus Areas

• Scalable supply chain models that provide clean cooking solutions (especially in rural areas).
• Alternative clean cooking technologies (stoves and fuels) e.g. mini-grid and solar PV powered electric cooking.
• Business models and technological innovations for stand-alone systems and Productive Use Energy (PUE) appliances.

Funding Information

• Funding per company is between US$100,000 and US$200,000. However, applications testing innovations that deliberately target low-income, marginalized and / or vulnerable consumers can access up to US$300,000.
• The innovation fund will only cover up to 70% of the total project cost. Co-financing of at least 30% of the project cost is expected.
• This is a performance-based grant where funding will be disbursed in tranches according to achievement of mutually agreed milestones which must be achieved.
• Output based activities supported through the Innovation Fund must be completed within 24 months from the time of contracting.
• The Innovation Fund will support approximately five projects or companies.

Products and Services Supported

• Scalable supply chain models for providing clean cooking solutions (especially in rural areas). Acknowledging that supply chains for cleaner fuels lack the necessary scale to reach many rural communities, the fund seeks to support supply chain innovations that can e.g., address demand uncertainty by matching demand and supply (e.g., Uberisation of the supply chain).
• Alternative clean cooking technologies (stoves and fuels) e.g., mini-grid and solar PV powered electric cooking.
• Business models and technological innovations for Productive Use Energy (PUE) appliances such as milling, threshing, grating, specific value chains (poultry, dairy, and coffee) and commercial scale refrigeration etc.
• Solutions that narrow the energy access affordability gap for clean cooking and productive use e.g., sustainable consumer financing models that could bring Tier 3(indoor emissions/overall emissions) and above within reach of a larger share of the population.

Eligibility Criteria

Only companies registered and operating in seven of the countries where the REACT SSA programme is being implemented can qualify, that is, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.

Post Date - 21-Apr-2021