Enabling African Cities for Transformative Energy Access

We create an enabling environment to provide adequate, safe, reliable, clean and affordable access to energy to the urban poor in informal settlements.

Years active:

2020 - 2024

Related ICLEI Pathway(s)

Locations

Kampala, Uganda; Freetown, Sierra Leone

Funded by

ENACT is part of the Transforming Energy Access (TEA) programme, funded with UK Aid from the UK government. It is managed by The Carbon Trust and delivered by ICLEI Africa, with support from Energy 4 Impact.

About

Project summary

Africa’s urban population boom will exacerbate the demand for energy. Despite international efforts in meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), challenges remain in terms of achieving the ambitions set out in SDG 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. Lack of access to a reliable energy sources is the primary barrier towards growth for many African businesses and economic sectors.

The Enabling African Cities for Transformative Energy Access (ENACT) project will work with local governments to create an enabling environment to provide adequate, safe, reliable, clean and affordable forms of energy to the urban poor residing in informal settlements and slums Kampala and Freetown.

By partnering with the private sector, local governments and national energy ministries, it is anticipated that ENACT will improve access to clean cooking and provide lighting solutions to at least 3,000 households and micro-enterprises in the two project cities. Such activity is expected to facilitate the creation of at least 2,000 jobs, 30% of these within businesses owned and managed by women.

ENACT is part of the Transforming Energy Access (TEA) programme, funded with UK Aid from the UK government. It is managed by The Carbon Trust and delivered by ICLEI Africa, with support from Energy 4 Impact.

Project aims

The ENACT project has three core components

Build the capacity of local governments in urban energy data collection, planning, financing, and private sector involvement;

Work with the private sector to test and implement financing and business models to improve the delivery of clean energy solutions for households and micro-businesses;

Share knowledge and best practices for scaling up and replication in urban areas across SSA under the #ENACTenergy communication campaign.

Project highlights

Key project activities

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Webinars

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WEBINAR 1: ENACTing energy access in Africa’s urban informal settlements WATCH RECORDING

WEBINAR 2: Building public-private partnerships to accelerate clean cooking access in Africa WATCH RECORDING

Key resources

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Clean cooking video series

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Clean cooking in sub-Saharan Africa explainer video
Improving clean cooking access in Freetown (Sierra Leone)’s informal settlements | Stories from residents who have switched to clean cooking technologies in the Susan’s Bay informal settlement
Improving clean cooking access in Kampala (Uganda)’s informal settlements | Hear from residents who have switched to clean cooking technologies in the Kisenyi informal settlement

Our work in Kampala

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The ENACT project organises a capacity-building workshop on clean and modern energy cooking services in Kampala, Uganda. The workshop highlighted the concerning disparity between population growth and clean cooking access rates in sub-Saharan Africa, with Uganda having less than 5% of its population with access to clean cooking. The detrimental effects of traditional cooking methods on climate, environment, gender, and health were discussed, with participants sharing their first-hand experiences. Read more here.
This case study showcases the transformative work that ENACT has implemented in Kampala.