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Spark+ Africa Fund Raises Over $40 Million in a First Close to Invest in Clean and Modern Cooking Solutions in Africa
Spark+ Africa Fund (“Spark+”) launched in partnership with 12 development finance institutions, foundations, family offices, and pension funds as the world’s first impact fund financing clean and modern cooking solutions in developing markets.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Press Release: UAE and IRENA Launch New Initiative to Provide Communities With Access to Energy for Clean Cooking
Beyond Food partnership launched by IRENA and UAE in collaboration with NAMA to provide clean cooking energy and technologies to communities and households.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
- Region
- North Africa & Near East
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UK Pledges £10 Million for Energy Projects In Nigeria
The UK is providing up to £10 million of concessional aid to reduce the risk for pension and insurance funds to invest in energy access projects, and support Nigeria’s COP26 commitments.
- Categories
- Energy
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Failing to Learn from Failure is Undermining Energy Access: Why the Lack of Transparent Discussion is Putting SDG7 at Risk
Despite the clear need for sustainable energy and clean cooking solutions, energy access projects frequently fail – and all too often, these failures go unreported. According to Iwona Bisaga at Modern Energy Cooking Services and Julia Tomei and Tash Perros at University College London, the lack of discussion of failures is holding back progress toward global energy access. They share insights from a new study that examines what failure means to different actors across the sector, assesses the different types of failures that occur, and explores why the topic is so rarely discussed.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
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Moving the Clean Cookstoves Sector Forward: Six Principles for Investors
Around 3 billion people rely on solid fuels for their daily cooking needs, causing adverse health, environmental and socioeconomic impacts – especially among women. Clean cookstoves promise a solution to these issues, but according to Mitzi Perez Padilla at FMO and Fabrizio Valenti at KSAR & Associates, the sector's effectiveness depends highly on how investment decisions are made. They share insights from a recent study that identifies six principles investors should follow to ensure that clean cookstove investments yield the greatest possible impact.
- Categories
- Energy, Impact Assessment, Investing
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Debunking Myths on the Impact and Income of Women Sales Forces: New Data Reveals Ways to Maximize Their Potential
The use of female sales agents to sell health-related products is sometimes seen as a panacea that can boost both healthcare access and women’s income empowerment. But little research has been done to prove or disprove these beliefs. Lucie Klarsfeld McGrath and Louise Berthault at Hystra discuss a new report analyzing data from 21 organizations that rely principally on women direct sales forces to sell health-related products. Their analysis sheds light on the role and impact that women sales forces can have, and suggests ways to maximize their impact.
- Categories
- Health Care
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How Cross-Industry Collaboration Can Spur the Digitalisation of the Last-Mile Distribution Sector
Last-mile distributors play a critical role in bringing energy and other life-changing products and services to customers in sub-Saharan Africa, and digitalisation is key to enabling these companies to operate at scale. But as Javier Baranda Alonso at Energy 4 Impact explains, both distributors and digital service providers often struggle to understand and service each other’s needs. He shares insights from a research report that highlights ways to accelerate the digitalisation of last-mile distribution by building bridges between the two sectors.
- Categories
- Energy, Social Enterprise, Technology, Telecommunications
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Analysis: What Do New Cookstoves in Ghana and Air Conditioners in NYC Have in Common? Energy Justice.
Combating energy poverty and energy insecurity are critical elements to achieving environmental health equity for billions worldwide.
- Categories
- Energy
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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