Executive summary

The SESA (Smart Energy Solutions for Africa) project is a collaboration between the European Union and nine African countries (Kenya, Ghana, South Africa, Malawi, Morocco, Namibia, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Nigeria) that focuses on enhancing energy access through innovative and scalable solutions. To support the wider adoption of successful implementation of such energy solutions across the continent, SESA evaluates the impacts of the energy solutions in the project’s demonstration and validation sites. For this purpose, data is collected.

This report covers D1.4: Data Collection Plan (DCP). The SESA project emphasises primary data collection carried out in-situ, complemented with secondary data. The Evaluation Framework and the Data Collection Plan outline the systematic approach to data management ensuring data integrity and access.

The DCP defines the processes and procedures related to the actual collection feeding into the repository environment described in D1.5: Data storage Repository Plan (DRP). All project partners are expected to adhere to the defined procedures for data generation, handling, and storage, ensuring fit-for-purpose data quality as well as compliance with platform design and sensitive data requirements. Data collection supports the creation of content for the SESA Toolbox, enabling the sharing of project insights, and data related to the Evaluation Framework which facilitates impact assessments across demonstration and validation sites. The securely managed SESA Repository comprises three environments:

1. Evaluation and assessments (E&A) repository:

The purpose is to hold all data that may be needed for analyses and (impact) assessments within the scope of the Evaluation Framework, such as the adopted energy solutions, business models and financing, capacity building, environmental and social impact.

2. Sign-off portal:

This repository holds all content that will be uploaded to the SESA toolbox. The content consists of documents and files which will be published on the SESA toolbox website, and includes the metadata needed to fill the website.

3. Back-end toolbox:

This repository is the actual back-end of the publicly accessible toolbox website. All its data will be sourced from the ‘Sign-off Portal Repository’ and is therefore only accessed by WP1 partners responsible for the online Toolbox.

Executive Summary:

The Project Management Plan (PMP) for the Smart Energy Solutions for Africa (SESA) provides an overview of all the management structure and articulates the responsibilities at the role/partner level in order to ensure the production of high-quality results in line with the project plan as described in the Grant Agreement.

The document is divided into four main sections: the first one details who the different bodies of the project are, from decision level bodies to the nomination of the different Work Packages (WP) and Task Leaders (TL), including their specific role within the SESA project. The second section includes the Work Plan Structure, including the Gantt chart, together with a Work Breakdown structure, the schedule of the different deliverables and milestones, all together indicating the responsible partners agreed for each. The third section defines all internal communication tools and channels that the Project Coordinator has set up to facilitate exchange with and among project partners. Finally, the last section is focused on the Quality Assurance that details the procedures to be followed in the elaboration of all project deliverables, including the review process, needed for guaranteeing high-quality level outcomes and an estimated timeline for all of these procedures.

Overall, the document aims at defining the governance structure, which will (1) encourage all project partners to behave in accordance with the consortium mission, values, norms, and culture; and (2) establish clear authority and decision-making levels.

The present update intends to provide the latest on how the SESA project is organising delivery, responsibilities and exchange of information. It complements some paragraphs with additional information following another year of the project and includes also specification on new forms of organisation which have been adopted to improve its overall unfolding.

Authors:

Judith Owigar, Stefanie Holzwarth, Emmanuel Biririza (UNH)

The Capacity Building Tools and Updates report, developed as part of the Smart Energy Solutions for Africa (SESA) project, outlines the project’s objectives and scope to strengthen knowledge across stakeholders, as well as the methodology used to achieve those. This report focuses on Work Package 2 (WP2), specifically Task 2.2 (T2.2) on Capacity Tools and Methodologies. It provides an overview of the capacity building plan, the development of E-learning modules for various SESA energy solutions, the hosting platform for these courses, regional platforms, and a database of experts. The report also discusses the integration of various guidelines and methodologies related to demonstration projects, climate resilience, and renewable energy solutions into the SESA toolbox and the linkages that the work undertaken has with other EU (but not only) projects and initiative with a similar scope of work.

The Capacity Building Plan for the SESA project, developed under Task 2.1, assessed the present capacity and identified capacity gaps for the Living Lab sites in Kenya, Ghana, Malawi, and South Africa. The identified capacity gaps revolved around several thematic areas, including policy and legal gaps, stakeholder and community knowledge and awareness, limited human and technical skills, restricted access to finance, and inadequate infrastructure. These findings informed the development of the Capacity Building Programme and the content for E-learning modules, besides various other activities and deliverables within the SESA project which are closer to the specific topics, ultimately aiming to bridge the identified capacity gaps in sustainable energy development in the target countries.

The SESA project has established Regional Platforms that supports the organization and coordination of regional teams and partners, aiming to maximize the adoption and replication potential of energy innovations tested within the project. These platforms facilitate a common implementation methodology, allowing detailed plans for demonstration actions, technical and operational aspects, business model adaptation, stakeholder engagement, and replication to be developed. The Regional Platforms are organized both geographically and thematically, promoting knowledge exchange, region specific capacity building, and replication across partner regions. Regional Training and Exchange activities are linked to project activities including capacity building, established within regional platforms.

The Capacity Building Programme within the SESA project encompasses an integrated e-learning initiative hosted by the NUA Campus platform, developed in collaboration with partners such as TUB, the Wuppertal Institute, and UN-Habitat. The programme provides free access to self-paced courses as well as webinars for a diverse audience, including students and civil society organizations. These courses aim to promote knowledge sharing and capacity building, with the potential to reach a broader audience beyond the project’s scope through online dissemination and YouTube channels. Currently, courses cover topics such as Solar Energy, Clean Cooking/Waste to Energy, and Electric Mobility, with additional courses in the pipeline for subjects like Second Life EV Batteries, Rural Internet Access, and Smart Microgrids . The training curricula encompass a wide range of materials related to technical aspects and related issues such as local and national policies (especially in the webinars), including slide decks, presentations, module outlines, handouts, quizzes, key background material, videos, and webinars.

In summary, this report plays a pivotal role in the SESA project’s mission to promote sustainable energy solutions in Africa by providing a comprehensive overview of capacity building tools, methodologies, and strategies tailored to the specific needs of the Living Labs in multiple African regions.

Authors:

TECNALIA: Amaia González Garrido, Eduardo García, Daniel Valencia Caballero, Elena Turienzo, Ander Zubiria Gómez, Ana Huidobro;

LEITAT: Natalia Rey, Eduard Borras, Daniele Molognoni;

Going Green: Chikondi Khonje;

Make It Green: Martin Karlsson;

RISE: Susanne Paulrud, Kent Davidsson

Deliverable D3.2 provides a guideline of the desired functional requirements related to the main energy technologies that could possibly be deployed in the SESA Living Labs, with special attention to the innovation degree, technology costs, expected performance, and their local end-users, covering households and rural communities, small businesses, tertiary sector, municipalities, the fishing and agricultural sector, educational and healthcare facilities, and e-mobility companies. The targeted audience of this deliverable, behind the SESA project, are the responsible entities of the Living Labs and project development partners, who will drive the implementation plans, and are responsible to select the appropriate technologies, systems, or solutions. Beside this primary target audience, the document can be of interest also for public and private sector professionals, such as equipment providers, project developers and local authorities beyond the SESA project. The ‘energy innovations’ (energy technologies of interest) covered in this Deliverable D3.2 have been specially selected from the draft implementation plans and actions which are planned to be deployed in the SESA Living Labs, including: solar photovoltaics, smart mini/microgrids, electric mobility, second life EV batteries, biomass to biogas (biodigester), and waste to energy for cooking (BioCooker), as well as the transversal topic of climate proofing. 

Authors:

Madeleine Raabe, María Yetano Roche

The present document is a complete and partner-validated draft of the Sustainable Energy Solutions catalogue which will be made available to the public in 2023. The catalogue has a two-fold aim:

● Internally: informs the implementation of SESA validation and replication sites (WP 4) and supports them by providing an introduction to the solutions that can be used in engagement with different actors (e.g., local government, civil society).

● Externally: informs and inspires outside audiences regarding the range of potential solutions and lessons learned during SESA implementation.

The catalogue is composed of ten factsheets. Each factsheet focuses on a specific sustainable energy solution or cross-cutting aspect. Factsheets cover both technological and business aspects of the solution, as well as other key dimensions that are relevant for the target audiences.

The catalogue is to be updated with lessons learnt from the implementation of the living labs over 2023 and 2024.

The development of the catalogue is led by Wuppertal Institute (WI) but each factsheet was co-created with inputs from stakeholders. Review rounds were central to the development process.

The list of factsheets was developed in consultation with partners, drawing from an identification of the main themes recurring in the living labs.