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Productive Use of Energy in Africa Is Powering Socio-economic Transformation While Offering Investment Opportunities
The programme enables African businesses to harness clean energy to improve incomes, build climate resilience and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Sendbox Raises $1.8 Million Seed to Digitise Deliveries for African SMEs
Sendbox, the Nigerian startup digitising deliveries for e-commerce and social commerce sellers in Africa, has closed a $1.8 million seed round to expand into more African markets, scale its product offerings and hire more talents.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- e-commerce, scale, startups
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Beyond Energy Efficiency: Key Trends and Pathways to Scale in the Solar Appliance Market
Solar appliance uptake is a key element of global energy access efforts. But according to Yasemin Erboy Ruff and Lauren Boucher at CLASP, no appliance is close to reaching market saturation, despite considerable gains in recent years. They share highlights from Efficiency for Access' 2021 Solar Appliance Technology Briefs, which characterize the market, trends and pathways to scale for 11 off-grid-appropriate solar appliances and enabling technologies, and explore what these findings mean for the solar appliance market and the customers it serves.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Technology
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Bengaluru-based Investment Platform Groww Raises $251 Million in Series E Round
Groww is an investment platform for retail investors, which allows people to invest in direct mutual funds, stocks, ETFs and IPOs.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Asia Pacific
- Tags
- impact investing, scale
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Press Release: Networks Partner to Catalyze Impact Investing in Africa
Leading investor networks join forces to connect investors and increase financing of African enterprises that create positive social and environmental impact.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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A Business Opportunity With Exponential Benefits: Linking Agriculture and Energy to Improve Livelihoods in Africa
Agriculture contributes around 23% of sub-Saharan Africa’s GDP, and energy access can help drive agricultural development. However, Scarlett Santana at RMI points out that the region has few businesses enabling productive energy uses in agriculture, and the lack of electricity for mechanization is limiting growth in rural communities. She explores the opportunities that exist for agribusinesses that link their investment and other business decisions to energy considerations – and for energy businesses that link their efforts to agriculture.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Energy
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Asante Closes First Tranche of $7.5 Million Series a Funding to Bridge the Gap in MSMEe Lending in Africa
Asante Financial Services Group announces $7.5 million Series A investment anchored by Goodwell Investments with participation by other investors including Sorenson Impact Foundation and Forsage Holdings.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- financial inclusion, fintech, MSMEs, scale
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How Blockchain Can Support Social Impact: Three Innovative Use Cases that Highlight its Potential
When it comes to blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin seem to dominate the headlines, whereas blockchain itself – cryptocurrencies’ underlying technology – often gets overlooked. But according to Raj Jain at the Social Finance Fund, blockchain may actually have a more compelling future than cryptocurrency – and the technology is flourishing in a variety of different spaces, including the social impact sector. He highlights three organizations that are putting blockchain to innovative use in social impact.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Investing, Technology
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