FUNDED PROJECTS

REPARLE (Renewable Energy Powering Agriculture and Rural Livelihood Enhancement) is developing a hybrid solar and gasification project in Northern Uganda. The off-grid project aims to address the significant energy access challenges in Uganda’s agricultural sector, where 80% of the population relies on farming but faces limitations due to outdated infrastructure, lack of electricity, and inefficient systems. By providing sustainable and affordable energy, REPARLE will power crop supply chains, electric vehicles, and clean cooking fuel production – ultimately boosting local economies, increasing farmers’ incomes, and reducing reliance on external aid. PREO funding will support the installation of agro-processing facilities, mini-grid powered EVs, solar PV systems, and a digital management platform to enhance the project’s infrastructure and efficiency, fostering a circular economy and improving market access to agricultural products.

Roam, formerly known as Opibus, is an electric mobility company focused on electrifying vehicles in Africa – starting with motorbike taxis, or “boda-bodas,” which are a vital part of Kenya’s economy. Boda-bodas are popular for their affordability and speed, but they are often poorly maintained, inefficient, and contribute to pollution. Roam, with funding from PREO, is piloting electric motorbikes in Kenya to help improve driver incomes, reduce environmental impact, create green jobs, and support the country’s shift to zero-emission vehicles. The project is also exploring different payment models trialled to assess uptake and long-term business model viability while also to assessing how e-motorbike production can be scaled-up in Kenya to benefit the local economy.

Simusolar, a solar-powered agriculture equipment supplier, is focused on improving productivity for smallholder farmers in East Africa, particularly through irrigation solutions. Given that 95% of the region’s farmland relies solely on rain, Simusolar’s solar-powered water pumps have significant potential to boost sustainable agricultural productivity. Simusolar has developed affordable irrigation solutions, designed to suit the local context and specific needs of low-income farmers in Tanzania, offering flexible payment options through its PAYGo platform. With support from PREO, the company has expanded its services to various agricultural sectors in Uganda, establishing partnerships to address distribution challenges and reach more farmers.

SLS Energy operates a “Battery-as-a-Service” model in Rwanda for industrial customers such as telecom towers. Its primary focus is on collecting retired batteries from e-mobility companies and e-waste companies, repurposing them and adding IoT controls for remote monitoring, to deploy on an “as-a-service” model in static applications. The company’s is partnering with One Acre Fund – a major agri-services company in sub-Saharan Africa that sells agricultural inputs, critical agronomic support and warehousing assistance, links produce to markets, and offers financing packages on an “as-a-service” model to smallholder farmers. Together, with support from PREO, they are piloting an “Irrigation-as-a-Service” model for smallholder farmers by deploying 100 Solar Water Pump (SWP) units equipped with second-life batteries. Each irrigation service kit contains a rechargeable battery pack system, inverter, electric pump, and delivery hoses.

SokoFresh supports smallholder farmers to reduce post-harvest loss and increase the value of their harvests, by unlocking access to off-grid cold storage, value-add activities and better buyers through cooling-as-a-service (CAAS) models. SokoFresh integrates cold storage, structured aggregation and market linkage activities into smallholder farmer value chains by offering these on a pay-as-you-store basis. Through a PREO-funded project, targeting local job creation and supporting higher incomes for smallholder farmers, the company has also improved quantity and quality of highly nutritious crops, and reduced the strain of agriculture on the local environment.

Strathmore University, located in Nairobi, Kenya, is a chartered institution known for its commitment to quality education and research. The university is validating Sunsafe, a mobile application designed to address the challenge of inaccurate solar system sizing in rural Kenya. This issue affects the reliability and adoption of solar energy. Strathmore University is testing four business models, including different sizes and options with and without QR codes, targeting retailers, technicians, manufacturers, and distributors.

In Tanzania, over 17,000 schools lack access to electricity, negatively affecting student enrolment, lesson quality, and overall educational outcomes, which contributes to high child illiteracy rates. Trend Solar, with PREO support, is addressing this issue by using their PAYG solar home system network to enhance digital education in off-grid households. The company provides low-cost data, smartphones, and locally relevant educational content. The initiative includes affordable solar home systems bundled with user-friendly smartphones and data packages for rural families. Through the Ubongo app, children can access free educational content that supports early literacy, numeracy, gender equality, and digital skills, helping to integrate these communities to improve their educational and economic prospects.

TRī is an early-stage electric mobility company operating in Tanzania. The company offers affordable three-wheeled vehicles to professional drivers through a lease-to-own scheme. In a country where 50% of road transportation relies on two- and three-wheeled taxis, TRī aims to make the transition to electric vehicles easy and cost-effective for drivers. By providing fully maintained electric three-wheelers, TRī enables drivers to double their daily income, from $5 to $10, while also addressing range limitations through state-of-the-art speed chargers. With support from PREO, TRī seeks to demonstrate the validity of its financial and operational models, reduce emissions, and promote gender equality within its workforce and customer base.

Volt-Terra, a joint venture between INENSUS and Gourmet Gardens, focuses on developing mini-grid solutions to provide reliable and affordable electricity to rural communities in Uganda, enabling economic growth through improved agricultural practices. In July 2021, the partnership received a grant from PREO to test the KeyMaker Mini-Grid Business Model in agricultural value chains. The model uses mini-grid electricity to boost local agro-processing to help local farmers overcome the challenges the face in crop cultivation and price exploitation due to the inherent short shelf life of most agricultural products and limited or lack of energy access to promptly process their harvest – helping to create additional income for operators. The project, implemented in Kayonza, Uganda, involved building a 60kWp PV mini-grid, supporting vanilla and chili cultivation, and introducing an electric dryer to enhance crop processing and access value-added markets.

Zembo sells electric motorcycles on credit plans and operates battery-swap stations in Uganda. Zembo’s motorcycle taxis (known locally as Boda Boda) powered by electricity offer a game-changing innovation with both economic and environmental advantages compared to conventional fossil fuel-powered motorcycles. Not only do they improve the revenues earned by drivers due to their lower energy and maintenance costs, but they also reduce pollution and benefit the local environment by cutting emissions and noise. Initially focused on urban Kampala, Zembo received PREO support to extend the swap network to rural areas in Masaka using off-grid stations.