MALAWI: start-ups GIT and Amped Innovation to electrify 15,000 rural households
With 96% of rural households in Malawi still without access to electricity, a partnership could improve the situation. It involves start-ups Green Impact Technologies (GIT) and Amped Innovation, which will be deploying 15,000 solar home systems over the coming months.
The partnership recently signed between start-ups Green Impact Technologies (GIT) and Amped Innovation involves providing access to electricity to at least 70,000 rural households by June 2024. To achieve this, the two companies will draw on $20 million in funding managed by the Off-Grid Market Development Fund (OGMDF) or Ngwee Ngwee Ngwee Fund (NNNF).
This mechanism is financed by the World Bank with a view to providing “emergency” access to energy and developing the off-grid solar energy market in Malawi. The NNNF consists of a $14 million loan window for off-grid solar energy providers, as well as a $6 million grant window for results-based financing (RBF).
“Climate shocks pose significant threats to Malawi’s agricultural economy and access to productive solar and energy devices will help communities build economic resilience and rise above the poverty line,” explains Andi Kleissner, Co-CEO of Amped Innovation. As part of the partnership, the California-based start-up (in the United States of America) will supply its WowSolar™ kits equipped with LED bulbs and charging stations for devices, including mobile phones.
This equipment will be distributed in the field by Green Impact Technologies through the pay-as-you-go system that is very common in the solar kit segment in sub-Saharan Africa. The company, headed by Admore Chiumia, recently put together a team of 200 sales agents to tour rural Malawi. For the record, 96% of rural households in Malawi do not yet have access to electricity.
