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Solar Energy Storage Faces a Battery of Challenges – How to Overpower Them
Diesel electricity generation is expensive, unsustainable and harmful to users' health and the environment. But it still dominates the energy mix in emerging markets. Why? According to Alec Macklis at Gridspan Energy, one reason is that solar energy is intermittent by nature, making it hard to incorporate into a reliable energy system. But though this problem can be solved by better energy storage, solar + storage solutions haven't gained major traction. He explores the reasons for this, and presents an innovative energy storage approach that could help.
- Categories
- Energy
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Visa Ghana Targets SMEs In Financial Inclusion Agenda
Global payment technology company, Visa, is targeting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to push its financial inclusion initiatives drive in Ghana.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- financial inclusion, SMEs, Visa
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Press Release: Rensource Secures $20M in Series A financing to Power Nigerian SME Productivity
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, only has 12 gigawatts of installed grid capacity, with just one-in-four Nigerians connected to the national power grid. In contrast, South Africa has 50 gigawatts. Rensource launched commercially in 2016 to address this problem
- Source
- Press Release
- Categories
- Energy
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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African Development Bank to Launch $270M Fund for Social Impact Investors
The African Development Bank is setting up a new US$270m social impact fund to support small and medium-sized enterprises.
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Social Enterprises Outperform Traditional Business, Says New Research
The new report demonstrates the strength of social businesses, just as Social Enterprise UK launched a celebrity-backed campaign to get consumers supporting brands with purpose.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship
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Charting the Next Decade in the Global Small and Growing Business Sector: A Q&A with ANDE Executive Director Randall Kempner
The Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs, a membership organization of investment groups, NGOs and business ecosystem advocates, recently marked its 10th anniversary. As it approaches a second decade moving the global small and growing business sector forward, ANDE announced a new strategy that focuses on gender, the environment and job creation. We spoke with Executive Director Randall Kempner about what the future holds for ANDE and the global SGB sector.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Finance, Impact Assessment, Investing
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An Impact Investing Model Designed for Africa: Why the Continent Should Embrace Search Funds
According to Brendan J. Mullen of Secha Capital, there's a little-known but perfectly suited investment model for Africa's emerging markets: search funds. Often vehicles for young, aspiring entrepreneurs to finance, acquire and grow established SMEs, search funds trust the local market by directing capital to where it’s most needed. As Secha launches a new $30 million fund, Mullen shares how investments in both growth and human capital are yielding impressive returns.
- Categories
- Investing
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Mainstreaming Impact Finance: Major Momentum and Gaps in the Transformation of the Financial Industry
There are exciting signs of a new level of mainstream corporate interest in sustainable business and finance. But despite the significant progress made in the sector since the 1970s, challenges remain – from lack of transparency in impact measurement, to lack of clarity about what impact even means. AlphaMundi founder Tim Radjy explores why we need to transform the rules of business and shift our systems to sustainable alternatives – and how impact finance can help make that happen.
- Categories
- Investing
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