Apply Now for AECF’s Innovation Fund Program

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.

Funding Criteria

The fund will support innovations in technological products, software, business models and distribution models, either:

• New innovations – products or services yet to be introduced to the market but beyond prototype stage, or
• Extreme changes to existing innovations (products or services)

Eligible Projects

• The proposed project can be in any or a combination of the following areas:
  • Scalability approaches: Scalable supply chain models for providing clean cooking solutions especially in rural areas. For instance, innovations in the supply chain that enable scalability through approaches that overcome demand uncertainty by matching demand
    and supply.
  • Clean cooking solutions: Alternative clean cooking technologies in the form of stoves and fuels, such as mini-grid and solar PV powered electric cooking.
  • Productive use energy solutions: 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.
  • Purchasing solutions: Solutions that narrow the energy access affordability gap for clean cooking and productive use. This included sustainable consumer financing models.
  • Improvement on existing businesses: Innovations that can be seamlessly incorporated into prevailing or growing business and distribution models are encouraged, such as PAYGo and ‘tool and fuel’ business models.
  • Only private companies can qualify for funding and must have a direct interest in commercializing the innovation being tested.
  • Partnerships are allowed, but applications must clearly demonstrate the roles of the parties and their capabilities.
  • An NGO interested in applying for funding must partner with a private company, where the private company will be the lead applicant.
  • In the case of partnerships, the lead applicant will be evaluated hence will be the key determinant of the outcome.
  • Companies in the REACT SSA portfolio of AECF also qualify to apply

  Ineligible Projects

  • The following projects are NOT eligible:
    • Technology development:
      • The fund is not intended to support technology development.
      • It is only intended to support technology validation, that is, testing to check whether a new product or service is a good market fit and whether it has market potential.

      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.

      Geographical Focus

      • Seven countries where REACT SSA programme is being implemented, that is, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.

      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.
      • Eligible projects and companies will be those that are testing new innovations or extreme iterations to existing innovations. Applicant must already have a viable product or service, that has already gone through the prototyping phase, with activities which should be completed within 24 months.