Women Powering Change: Leading the transformation in Smart Energy Solutions for Africa

Women Powering Change: Leading the transformation in Smart Energy Solutions for Africa

In the dynamic landscape of energy research and engineering, the pivotal role of women is increasingly gaining recognition. Across Europe and Africa, female researchers and engineers are making significant contributions to the development and implementation of smart energy solutions. Their participation not only brings diversity to the field but also enhances innovation and inclusivity in addressing the energy challenges faced by these regions.

“Sometimes people may think that because you´re a woman you´re not able to manage a big scientific project. Don´t let that happen to you. We, as women, can do anything! In fact, it’s high time to recognise that women should have a bigger impact on clean energy development in Africa: from policy and business perspective to offering innovative and women-driven smart sustainable energy solutions,” notes Magdalena Sikorowska, Senior Expert for Sustainable Energy Systems at ICLEI Europe and Coordinator of the SESA project.

In Europe, women are at the forefront of energy research, driving groundbreaking initiatives aimed at transitioning towards sustainable energy sources. From academia to industry, female researchers are leading projects focused on renewable energy technologies, energy efficiency, and grid optimization. Their expertise and leadership are instrumental in shaping policies and strategies for a cleaner and more resilient energy future.
Similarly, in Africa, women are playing a vital role in driving energy innovation and accessibility, particularly through initiatives like the Smart Energy Solutions for Africa (SESA) project. SESA is committed to promoting gender equality and empowering women in the energy sector across the continent.

“Diversity in research is essential for producing results that benefit the whole society. The proposed innovative solutions have been co-developed with local stakeholders and SIN is assessing on business models ensuring inclusiveness and bringing also unique women perspective and experiences to the table.” Elena Calzado Roldan, International Project Manager at Smart Innovation Norway

Empowering women in the energy sector 

Concrete actions taken by SESA include supporting clean cooking solutions in Malawi, Nigeria and Rwanda, where women are actively involved in promoting and adopting clean cooking technologies. By providing access to cleaner and more efficient cooking methods, SESA is not only improving health outcomes but also empowering women economically.

“As a woman led organization, we have introduced the knowledge sharing aspect where we train young women about the clean cooking technology for them to learn how to manufacture improved cookstoves and pellets. This will not only improve their entrepreneurial skills but also will make them contribute to the quick transition from the old cooking modes that are known as three stones to improved ones in Rwanda and globally.” Anitha Umutoniwase, CEO of EcoGreen Solutions Ltd.

“Access to clean cooking technology in Rwanda is empowering women by reducing their exposure to harmful smoke from traditional cooking methods, allowing them to pursue education, entrepreneurship, and community involvement with improved health and time-saving benefits. This shift enables women to contribute more actively to their families’ well-being and overall economic development.” Josiane Uwabera an Engineering Student at the University of Rwanda who recently took part in the training organised by University of Rwanda and EcoGreen.

Furthermore, SESA is spearheading efforts to promote e-mobility in countries like Morocco, where women are increasingly participating in the transition towards electric vehicles. Through training programs and partnerships with organizations like the Rural Association of Girls in Marrakesh, SESA is equipping women with the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in the emerging field of e-mobility.

“Motorbikes are already a thriving culture in Marrakesh city, particularly among women. With the Sesa project’s introduction of e-mobility, this dynamic scene not only embraces sustainability but also fosters empowerment, amplifying the voices and roles of women riders,” contributes Ibtihal Ait Abdelmoula, Head of Digitalization and Data Science Group at Green Energy Park and partner of the SESA project.

These initiatives not only contribute to reducing carbon emissions but also create opportunities for women to enter traditionally male-dominated sectors of the economy.

As evidenced by the recent training in Rwanda, women are actively engaged in driving change and innovation in the energy sector. Their participation not only amplifies the impact of initiatives like SESA but also paves the way for a more sustainable and inclusive energy transition in Africa and beyond.

As we move forward, it is imperative to continue supporting and empowering women in energy research and engineering. By harnessing their talent and expertise, we can accelerate progress towards a more equitable, resilient, and sustainable energy future for all.

Kenya Living Lab – Interview to Charles Ogalo

Kenya Living Lab – Interview to Charles Ogalo

What is the purpose of the Kenya Living Lab? And how are SESA actions going to be implemented there?

The goal of the Kenyan living lab is to serve as a real-life test bed for piloting and testing innovative energy technologies and business models in rural and peri-urban contexts. The overall objective of the living lab is to test and provide sustainable energy access solutions that are relevant for both urbanized and rural contexts in Africa. 

The living lab approach will be implemented by co-creating, testing and evaluating innovative technologies and business models with local users in order to address the three main focus areas of innovation in energy transitions: access, productive use and a circular economy, with the goal of developing solutions that meet user needs.

The living labs will be co-developed in cooperation between consortium members, innovators and local communities. 

What are the demonstration sites and why were these specific locations chosen?

Demonstration sites are locations selected to implement and pilot various innovative technologies and business models. The demonstration sites will house two self-sufficient solar charging hubs where various use cases will be developed and tested, with the ultimate goal of creating an integrated system for sustainable energy access, productive use of solar energy (PUE), and promoting sharing and circular economy approaches. 

These demonstration sites were selected because they embody key characteristics relevant to the testing and replication of the intended innovative technologies and business models. These characteristics were such as the demographic profile, the availability of safe drinking water, energy poverty, the socioeconomic and policy environment, as well as geographic and structural factors.

Why is Lake Victoria so important for the Kenya Living Lab implementation?

Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest freshwater lake and a vital source of income for the rural and urban communities that surround it, is one of East Africa’s most valuable natural resources. It is also a significant source of revenue for Kenya, as a large portion of the fish distributed in Kenya comes from the lake, and irrigation schemes in the region rely on it as well. 

Despite this endowment, the Lake Victoria region is plagued by high rates of poverty, with more than 40% of the population living below the poverty line, and long-term livelihoods are threatened by climate change, high inflation driving up the cost of energy, and declining fish stocks due to pollution and overfishing. Furthermore, a large proportion of the communities living around the lake lack access to safe drinking water, cannot afford electricity due to the high cost of connectivity, and lack access to energy, technologies, and equipment to promote productive use of solar energy, a resource abundant in the region. 

The Lake Victoria basin is endowed with significant amounts of renewable energy; however, the region’s total energy contribution from renewable energy sources is very low: at less than 1%.

Thus, the living labs implementation seeks to tap into the untapped potential in the Lake Victoria region, such as the abundant renewable energy resources, while preserving the environment and improving lives, through innovative business models and technologies promoting productive use of energy, sharing economy, and circular economy approaches. The establishment of living labs and piloting the various use cases has the potential to significantly improve energy access, create jobs, and boost productivity for the majority of the Lake Victoria region’s fishing and agriculture communities.

The agricultural and fishing sectors dominate as key income drivers in Kenya. How will the Living Lab help these sectors improve their businesses?

Agricultural productivity remains low despite favorable climatic conditions due to the use of traditional farming methods. In terms of fishing, hazardous fishing methods, such as the use of kerosene lamps, despite the fact that kerosene is expensive, and lead acid battery powered lamps, have resulted in declining fish stocks due to lake pollution and rising fuel costs, making fishing using fossil fuels costlier. Few fishermen, horticulture farmers, and market traders in rural and peri-urban areas have access to drying facilities, cold storage facilities, or refrigerated transportation to keep their produce fresh after harvest, resulting in significant income and produce losses. 

The high initial investment cost of purchasing equipment and technology, as well as the unreliability of local electricity grid supply, have been attributed to the widespread lack of refrigeration or advanced value addition infrastructure. This lack of infrastructure leads to widespread spoilage of fresh produce after harvest. Both fishermen and farmers want to increase their incomes by better preserving their produce and selling it at higher prices.

The various use cases that will be powered by self-sufficient solar hubs will help both fishermen and farmers use solar powered technology for fishing, mechanizing and modernizing agriculture, and better preserving products while increasing their incomes and productivity. Piloting demonstration actions for the various use cases will improve energy access, enable access to clean safe drinking water, provide irrigation equipment and technology, promote productive use of solar energy and promote sharing and circular economy approaches that will help fishing communities and farmers, in rural and peri-urban areas, with improved sustainable access to energy and technologies.

How will this living lab improve the lives of Kenya citizens? 

We hope to achieve an economic growth of at least 25% in the areas and regions where demonstration actions will be carried out, with at least 100 new stable jobs created either directly or indirectly.

For water services, it is expected that we will be able to provide at least 3000 liters of clean, safe drinking water per day.

We expect to lease at least 200 to 300 solar fishing lanterns per day to improve fishing and fishermen’s productivity, thereby improving regional food security.

The majority of the piloting for electric vehicle two wheelers is focused on developing the business models, developing the electric powertrain and testing system components such as the motor, gears, sprockets, battery, and inverters. In addition, future tests on payment models, drive motor torque, and road load will be conducted. 

Thus, after piloting and testing the respective use cases and appliances, we will be able to measure the impact and number of users for EVs, solar cooling, drying, and agriculture.

Considering the current state of sustainable energy access in Kenya. What are the challenges you expect to face during this Living Lab implementation?

Barriers related to environmental impacts: Water pollution, soil erosion, and water hyacinth are three major environmental challenges in the Lake Victoria basin region that could pose an inherent challenge to demonstration actions. Water pollution from industrial discharge, unregulated mining practices, and increased fertilizer use pose a significant threat to Lake Victoria waters. 

This is exacerbated further by a rapidly growing population, deforestation, poor sanitation practices, and unsustainable waste disposal practices, all of which contribute significantly to the Lake pollution challenge. Strong winds blow water hyacinth towards the Lake’s shores on occasion, clogging shallow waters that communities rely on for domestic use, crop irrigation, and livestock water and might have an impact on our abstraction of water from Lake Victoria. This might have an effect on our solar water pumping for drinking water, and impact livelihoods of Omena fishermen affecting revenues for solar fishing lamps. 

Awareness barriers: Introducing new or relatively new technologies has an inherent challenge in that people are comfortable with what they know and will always be extra critical and suspicious of something new. This is particularly relevant to e-mobility, electric solar powered agriculture and battery packs for home and business use.  There is still a relatively low awareness on productive use of solar energy such as solar energy being used for e-mobility, water pumping, irrigation, drying, charging of batteries or for basically any use other than pico solar systems.  

Barriers due to Gender relations in the fish trade: There is a practice in the Lake Victoria region of distributing fish and benefits in exchange for sex known as “fish for sex,” also known as jaboya in Luo. Sexual favors are usually exchanged between male fishermen and female fish processors or traders in exchange for preferential access to fish and fish for domestic consumption. However, the extent of this practice is not well documented, so there is no way of knowing how widespread it is. The prevalence of poverty, a lack of alternative livelihoods, and declining fish stocks have all been major motivators for this practice which might have an impact on implementation of use cases such as solar drying.

Inflation: According to the Central Bank of Kenya, the inflation rate was 6.16% on May 31 2022, with a 12-month average of 7.08%. This has the effect of driving up the cost of appliances that will be used for the various use cases, increasing appliance prices by more than 50%. Inflation may have a negative impact on our target consumers’ purchasing power, resulting in an inherent loss of purchasing power and affecting product and service uptake.

After the Living Lab implementation in the rural and urban sites of Kenya, how do you plan to replicate the outcomes of these sites in other African countries?

Based on the preliminary findings from the demonstration actions in the rural and peri urban living labs, the technologies, as well as the business models and use cases, will be validated and tested for replicability. The replication potential will be determined by developing replication guidelines based on the implementation of demonstration actions and the lessons learned from demonstrating viable business models that fit local contexts and fit the user needs and present sustainable unique value proposition

The innovations tested in the demonstrations will be scaled-up, focusing on bankability, commercial applications and amplifying their potential to mitigate climate change, address the international sustainability accords and vitalize local economy. This process will then be replicated regionally with policy development, implementation support and advice on stakeholder engagement and financing mechanisms.

Charles Ogalo

Charles Ogalo

Project Coordinator, WeTu

Charles Ogalo is the SESA project coordinator for WeTu, an environmentally conscious Kenyan Social Enterprise that uses sustainable innovative technologies and business models to provide clean energy, safe water, and better mobility solutions to rural communities along Lake Victoria in Kenya. He is in charge of the day-to-day oversight and coordination of demonstration project implementation activities. He has extensive experience in project management and coordination, including supporting and piloting innovative projects and programs at the national, regional, and international levels. In his current role as SESA coordinator, he is in charge of leading and coordinating the demonstration pilot activities in the Kenyan living labs.

Africities – Key Takeaways

Africities – Key Takeaways

By Stefanie Holzwarth from UN-Habitat

 

The Global Energy Demand

Regardless of the source, energy is a major factor for development. It is needed for transport, industrial and commercial activities, buildings and infrastructure, water distribution, and food production. Most of these activities take place in or around cities, which are on average responsible for more than 75 per cent of a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and therefore the main engines of global economic growth. To run their activities, cities require an uninterrupted supply of energy. They consume about 75 per cent of global primary energy and emit between 60 and 70 per cent of the world’s total greenhouse gases.

This figure rises to approximately 80 per cent when the indirect emissions generated by urban inhabitants are included. Buildings also consume vast amounts of energy at all stages of their existence. Energy is needed for the raw materials, construction process, and maintenance and daily operational needs such as lighting, air conditioning, heating, cleaning etc. In addition, urban sprawl, increasing distances between destinations, and inefficient public transport systems prompt overall reliance on private motorized transport, such as cars, which have a high energy consumption, mostly of petroleum products.

The global energy mix is still dominated by fossil fuels. They account for more than 80% of energy consumption. Unfortunately, this widespread use of fossil fuels causes a number of challenges. Carbon-based energy generation has a large ecological footprint, not only due to rising greenhouse gas emissions and pollution caused by burning fuels, but also because of extraction techniques that contaminate the environment, and frequent production or delivery accidents.

Furthermore, because of the current mono-dependency on fossil fuels, supply drops or price hikes can easily disrupt economies. Fossil fuels are also all too often a source of regional conflicts and are misused as a means of political pressure. Besides, fossil fuel resources are not infinite, and their depletion is a near reality.

The Challenge

Urban areas require an uninterrupted supply of energy, consuming 75% of global primary energy. While minimizing the ecological footprint of cities, energy distribution needs to become sustainable, more inclusive and fair to foster universal development.

Increasing population growth, urbanization and expanding economic development are putting pressure on limited energy which annual demand growth is around 7 % in developing countries, while the supply remains stable. Hence a mismatch between the supply and demand and frequent power rationing in cities. Significant amount of energy is also wasted daily in different sectors: building, transport, industries etc.

The situation in African cities

African cities lack sufficient access to energy. The growing energy demand, due to population growth and rapid urbanization, has not been addressed adequately. Although governments have invested considerably in the energy generation sectors, these efforts remain limited and insufficient. African cities need more energy to develop and diversify its economic. Most of the urban dwellers – living in informal settlements – are consider energy poor. In fact, they spent a big share of their income (more than 10 %) on energy services.

African cities need to promote energy demand management in all the sectors. Modern buildings in Africa consume more than 54 % of total national energy. Most of this energy is wasted due to the poor building design that is not adapted to the tropical climate. It is therefore important to design buildings with bioclimatic architecture principles.  Priorities should be given to activities and appliances that consume less energy to promote the transition towards Net Zero Carbon.

Strategies for improving the urban energy situation

A sustainable urban energy system will need low carbon technologies on the supply side, and efficient distribution infrastructure as well as lowered consumption on the end-user side. Cities therefore need to shift from the current unsustainable fossil fuel energy generation towards using renewable energy sources, not only because of looming resource depletion but also to curb the negative externalities such as pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. At the same time, energy consumption must be reduced by changing consumption patterns and adopting energy saving techniques.

Lastly, because energy is paramount to revenue generation, its distribution needs to become more inclusive and fair to foster universal development, especially for the urban poor. Although renewable energy technologies (RET) such as wind, water, solar, and geothermal are becoming more accessible — and already cover the energy demands of some neighbourhoods if not whole cities in certain areas — intermittence of supply and high upfront costs are the main deterrents of a wider adoption. Nevertheless, benefits in the long run will outweigh the initial challenges, both from an environmental and economic perspective.

For instance, once a renewable energy generation system is in place, future running costs are usually very low due to an inexpensive and abundant supply of the energy source. Cities also need to assess their meteorological and geographical specificities to best transform the surrounding natural resources into power. To tackle intermittency, several renewable energy sources should be combined to overcome source-specific shortages, such as solar at night, or wind during doldrums. Solutions can also come from waste and heat recovery technologies that can be used to bridge supply gaps.

Smart grids – electric grids that harmonize supply and demand – provide another solution for the intermittent power supply by helping to balance variable power generation and end-user needs. These grids are also more efficient in transmission and distribution, thus reducing energy loss. Machine shifts can be automated to run during hours of the day when there is enough power to meet demand.

Lowering energy consumption

The major change, however, needs to come from the end-users – residents, businesses, industries – who must control their consumption. The less energy that is used, the less needs to be produced. Technology can also assist in optimizing energy use. Smart grids can be paired with smart appliances or even a whole smart home or building, which respond to varying electricity supply and prices.

Households, offices, and factories can program smart metres to operate certain appliances when power supplies are plentiful. For example, a washing machine can be set up in such a way that it will only start operating when there is enough power in the grid or when the price is under a certain threshold. Buildings themselves have huge energy saving potential if they embrace green or low-energy building concepts and passive design principles.

Savings can be made by integrating efficient heating, cooling, insulation, lighting, and water distribution systems in new or rehabilitated buildings that will increase energy retention.

Likewise, on site alternative energy sources such as solar panels on a roof can supplement power from the grid. The use of recycled, reused, or low energy building materials will also contribute to a better energy balance.

To cut fossil fuel use for transportation needs, cities need to develop attractive public transport systems and must increase the share of non-motorized transport in developing specific infrastructure (such as cycling lanes and walkways), and optimize delivery of goods, (for instance by promoting the use of rail for cargo transport).

Cities can also opt to introduce electric mobility to lower their emissions from transport. However, for cities to fully benefit from the transition to electric mobility, these efforts need to be implemented in the overall context of better and more compact urban planning with a focus on accessibility and urban liveability.

This will require close collaboration between public and private actors in which governments can bring forward enabling regulatory frameworks and provide incentives to encourage the uptake of electric mobility.

Food production and water distribution are huge energy consumers. Curbing food and water waste will therefore also contribute to lowering overall energy use. Besides reducing energy on the production and delivery side, cities also need to promote urban agriculture, such as rooftop farming (it is estimated that 30% of urban spaces could be covered).

Consumption habits need to change, residents should be encouraged to use more local produce and to take on prosumption, the production of one’s own food. The same reasoning can be extended to consumption habits in general, with residents adopting more sustainable consumption habits and recycling concepts.

Cities need to ensure that industries pool their resources in order to create synergy effects. This can be achieved by establishing eco-industrial parks, where waste and by-products of one industry serves as the raw material of another, thereby improving material and energy efficiency and decreasing environmental emissions. From an economic perspective, this would also make companies more competitive, as better waste management results in cost savings and a higher environmental and business performance.

Governments as regulators and drivers of change

Cities need to establish strong policies and standards to develop sustainable urban energy systems and to reduce the use of unsustainable technologies and practices. Governments must not only institute legislation to regulate energy use and consumption, but must also set up incentive measures that promote research, innovation, and, most importantly, the adoption of greener and more efficient technologies.

Sound collaboration and mutual understanding between the private sector — which runs most of the world’s energy systems — and overseeing authorities is therefore paramount for short-term commercial interests not to overshadow long-term environmental concerns and sustainable development opportunities.

Governments should also pursue collaboration between local and international partners in order to enable local companies to strengthen their knowledge, expertise, and market reach.

Governments of developing countries should consider private-public partnerships to develop their energy systems, as current costs cannot be carried by a country alone.

For each city to be able to adapt to its own local particularities, authorities need to design decentralised energy systems and infrastructure, and also be permitted to have specific legislation and tax systems to either promote the use of sustainable energy, or to curb and dissuade the use of polluting, inefficient technologies and consumption habits.

Ongoing Projects

 

Draft conclusions

The speakers agreed on the need for a paradigm shift from the business-as-usual practices to net zero carbon solutions. They all agreed that building back better and greener is possible and the time is now.

The solutions for a Net Zero carbon transitions are available and should be put into practices. This requires proper planning, strategy development, allocation of sufficient resources and implementation. Local governments should make use of the abundant renewable energy resources to address their energy need. Municipalities should emulate the example of Kisumu County that is developing its 100% Renewable Energy Visioning and strategy. Countries should share their experience and solutions among each other in the building and energy sector.

One low carbon solution that was discussed was the use of wood in Sweden as a building material, and this could be a solution that can be explored further in African countriesThe session further discussed innovative approaches from the African continent such as electric tuk-tuks and multifunctional energy hubs, presented by the Kenyan startups Autotruck and WeTu.

The side event demonstrated that the one-solution-fit-all approach is not the way to go. In fact, there is a need to work with all stakeholders, from the academia, public authorities, private sector, civil society organisations, development partners, industries and others to develop solutions that look at different value chains and not just a sectoral solution.

Recommendations:

 National governments

1- National governments should set the example by adopting policies that facilitate the deployment of green building principles and the use of locally available and low carbon building materials to address the housing shortage.

2- Passive building principles exist and should be given priority over building practices that do not integrate local climate in their design.

3- National government should encourage the adoption of renewable energy technologies and promote their research and development at the academic level.

Local and subnational authorities

1- Local governments should take bold decisions, be visionary and plan for immediate and long term programs on low carbon energy

2- Municipalities should emulate the example of Kisumu County that is developing its 100% Renewable Energy Visioning and strategy. This will help the county to transitioning gradually to carbon neutral development.

3- Local solutions on smart energy exist and should just be un-packed with sufficient resources allocated for their exploitation.

Development partners should

1- Assist both national and local governments in capacity development; demonstration and sharing of best practices.

2- Facilitate the transfer of the technologies in the energy, building and transport sector.

3- Help national and local governments to avoid making the same mistake as developed countries with high carbon footprints

Possible recommendations to the African Union Commission,

1- Develop a continent-wide roadmap to carbon neutral development.

2- Mainstream energy and resource efficiency in the AU 2063 Agenda.

3- Develop a regional policy on the investment and adoption of locally available building materials.

Possible recommendations to the Regional Economic Communities,

  • Create more spaces, discussion platforms, and regional conference to share best practices on smart energy solutions (policies-technologies-financial mechanism – lessons learned etc.) on energy access, energy efficiency, renewable energy technologies and sustainable mobility.

Possible recommendations to the continent’s financial institutions

  • Investment on demonstration projects
  • The continent is endowed with a huge renewable energy potential and only a small fraction is developed. Financing institution should replicate successful energy projects and ensure strong collaboration with national and local governments.

Possible recommendations to UCLG Africa

  • Develop in collaboration with UN-Habitat an Online Academy on Urban Energy for Local Governments. Training will include: urban energy planning, energy efficiency measures; bioclimatic architecture; conversion of gasoline vehicles into electric vehicles.
  • Ensure that Smart Energy Solutions & Carbon neutrality become one of the main topics of the next Africities Meeting.