The 12th Sankalp Africa Summit, held on Feb 26-27 in Nairobi, brought together a pivotal cohort of start-up innovators, investors, entrepreneurs and policymakers to accelerate the innovation needed to enhance Africa’s energy transition. The summit ignited lively discussions on harnessing entrepreneurial talent to address Africa’s most pressing challenges, including food insecurity, climate vulnerability, and gaps in healthcare and education provision.
Sankalp Africa partners closely with Energy Catalyst, an Innovate UK programme funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology under the Ayrton Fund, supporting the innovation needed to realise a just energy transition across Africa, Asia and the Pacific. The Energy Catalyst Accelerator Programme, managed by the Carbon Trust, helps funded companies attend events like the Summit as it recognises their importance for building strategic partnerships, fostering ideation and encouraging cross-sector collaboration.
A notable highlight was the Energy Catalyst-hosted session on adapting climate innovations to Africa’s unique needs. The session offered dialogue between clean energy innovators and a panel of experts and investors providing localised support and funding. Participants agreed that developing tailored solutions depends on understanding local practices and market conditions, as well as leveraging local partnerships, context-specific technical support and innovative funding mechanisms.
Innovation from Uganda, Nigeria and beyond
This year, nine Energy Catalyst companies attended the event, showcasing sustainable energy innovations with significant potential to improve livelihoods, incomes and climate resilience across sub-Saharan Africa:
Mandulis Energy, a Ugandan enterprise whose circular economy model uses waste and by-products to create clean energy for processing crops, cooking and fertiliser production.
NjordFrey, a Rwandan-based aquaponic farming company enabling millions of rural smallholder farmers to achieve income and food security using AI-driven monitoring to provide real-time data and insights on farmers’ aquaponic systems, boosting productivity and climate resilience.
GreenPower Overseas is helping to revolutionise Nigeria’s energy sector, providing solar home systems, generators, and freezers, delivering affordable energy and cooling solutions for underserved communities.
Hubl Logistics is transforming food logistics in Malawi with CoolRun, an innovative cold chain storage and transport solution. Using passive cooling technology, CoolRun enables instant cold chain capability on any vehicle, eliminating the need for costly and polluting refrigerated trucks.
Open Energy Labs’ Smart Solar Ready Board is a game-changing solution to Zambia’s deepening energy crisis. By integrating solar capabilities, energy storage, and smart management, it hybridises various energy sources, enhancing system flexibility and energy independence.
Direct Impact Partners builds solar-powered cold and dry storage capacity for farmer’s cooperatives and agribusinesses to reduce food spoilage and increase farmer prosperity.
SHIELD is solarising hospitals in Kenya using Energy Attribution Certificates to finance installation.
Africa Power has developed Mossie-GO – a Solar-powered active vector-control dispenser to repel mosquitoes – protecting off-grid rural households from malaria.
Agsol showcased solar-powered milling technology. The company is pioneering efficient and affordable staple food processing in Africa.
Lilo Jose, Director at Hubl Logistics said, “This has been the single most useful show we have ever done. We made excellent connections across potential customers, investors and business partners.”
While Granville Wood, Director at Open Energy Labs, said, “It is important for us to connect with our local partners on the ground and the university we are partnering with. We also managed to connect with important prospective investors at the event and discuss strategic collaborations on our gender equality and impact agenda.”
With over 600 million people in Africa seeking electricity access, the need for scalable, localised, clean energy solutions has never been greater. Energy Catalyst is supporting and accelerating climate solutions tailored to Africa’s unique energy landscape, while the Sankalp Africa Summit continues to develop the ecosystem that will power Africa’s sustainable energy future.
Tsvetina Chankova is the Innovation Manager at the Carbon Trust, a global climate organisation driven by the mission to accelerate the move to a decarbonised future. Email: Tsvetina.Chankova@carbontrust.com
