SNV launches PUE working group with Kenya Renewable Energy Association 

SNV, in partnership with Kenya Renewable Energy Association (KEREA), has launched a Productive Use of Energy (PUE) working group. This group will address the recommendations from a 2021 study published under the Accelerating Access for Productive Use of Energy project.

The Accelerating Access for Productive Use of Energy project is implemented in Kenya by SNV with support from the EnDev Programme. It promotes access to energy products and services, including solar-powered systems appropriate for productive use in business settings, while also creating an enabling environment for the same businesses.

KEREA steers the activities to enhance the enabling environment. They include sector coordination, advocacy/policy advisory, the development of standards for solar for productive use and support to enhance the enforcement of existing policies and regulations.

In 2021, SNV published a study titled "The market for productive use of solar energy in Kenya", which recommended key actions for the Productive use of Energy (PUE) sector in Kenya. The study covered the solar supply chain, integrating electric appliances, and productive applications of off-grid solar in Kenya. It mapped about 100 companies engaged in the PUE ecosystem in Kenya, with nearly 75% of these companies dealing with home solar systems while 82% are involved in the solar water pumping, cooling, or e-mobility sector.

Launch of the PUE working group

Following the report's recommendations, KEREA, in partnership with SNV, set up a PUE working group to address the key action points from the report. The group was officially launched on 20 April 2022 with representation from the Ministries of Energy and Agriculture, KEREA, The Global Off-grid Lighting Association (GOGLA), GIZ, SNV, and PUE companies.

The committee has ten representatives and is required to comply with the one-third gender rule. The group plans to hold meetings quarterly.

Objectives of PUE in Kenya

The objectives of the working group include:

• Participating in a national inter-ministerial public-private dialogue on PUE.

• Addressing the consumer financing gap for home solar PUE systems by engaging with interested financiers.

• Developing and de-risking a reliable PUE asset financing vehicle; engaging with government, regulatory bodies, and other development partners to review and implement quality standards in the sector.

• Creating awareness to promote the PUE sector, including gender equity;

• Participating in market analysis.

• Engaging in evidence-based advocacy for conducive policy, legal and regulatory frameworks for PUE in Kenya.

• Developing evidence on PUE's socio-economic impacts.

Various stakeholders present during the launch expressed interest in supporting the PUE working group. GIZ and GOGLA, through their "Water for Energy and Food project", will enhance PUE technologies with a focus on clean energy adoption for the food value chain. The Ministry of Agriculture will support by promoting the mechanisation of the agricultural sector using solar to serve the small-scale farmers in the country. The private sector echoed their support for the group and expressed interest in partnering with the Ministry of Agriculture to mechanise smallholder agricultural farmers with solar technologies for irrigation, cooling, and milling.

Notably, the Ministry of Energy is mandated to provide policy and regulatory frameworks, offered to partner with the stakeholders to provide reliable and sustainable energy to small and large-scale farmers in Kenya. This is in line with their overall goal to increase the number of end-users in off-grid and weak-grid areas of Kenya by accelerating access to affordable, reliable, and clean energy aligned to SDG 7.

Following the launch of the working group, a follow-up meeting was planned to brainstorm and identify priority actions and interventions and prepare a road map of activities for the rest of the year.

More information

For further reading, please see:

• New EnDev reports launched on the productive use of energy in Kenya

• To learn more about the EnDev programme, visit this website.

You can also contact snvendevkenya@snv.org for inquiries.