Public Finance Mechanisms for Enabling Market-Led Clean Cooking Access in African Urban Informal Settlements

Distributed energy services, including clean cooking solutions delivered through market-based approaches, present opportunities and challenges for the public sector. This is particularly true in low-income markets, including those represented by informal settlements. To fully recognise the private sector’s significant role in contributing to national clean cooking adoption targets, it is essential to revise traditional views of the public sector’s role in energy service provision. Broader and more integrated planning approaches must be adopted to address these challenges effectively.

This report aims to delve deeper into the existing clean cooking financing landscape and identify gaps, opportunities and conditions of energy financing for both the private and public sectors. It also aims to provide useful recommendations on financing mechanisms that can be leveraged to implement energy, particularly clean cooking access solutions in urban informal settlements, primarily in African contexts.

This report is developed as part of the Enabling African Cities for Transformative Energy Access (ENACT) project being implemented in Freetown, Sierra Leone and Kampala, Uganda, by ICLEI Africa and Energy 4 Impact – Mercy Corps.