Deadline: 17 April 2020
Through technical and / or financial assistance, the project ‘Fond des Energies Renouvelables pour la Résilience du Burkina Faso (FERR-BF)’ would like to support projects that can strengthen and accelerate the growth of income-generating activities by adopting renewable energies (including photovoltaic solar and improved stoves).
The RRIF-BF aims to contribute to strengthening economic resilience and adapting to climate change for the most vulnerable segments of the population, women, young people, small farmers, micro and small businesses and refugees from rural and peri-urban regions of Burkina Faso, by promoting access to clean energy solutions, specifically supporting income-generating activities, provided by the private business sector and accelerated by innovative business models and solutions financing based on digital or digital technology.
At the end of 2021 FERR-BF aims to support 3,000 customers (60% women and 20% young people) with income-generating products provided by ESCO’s, while simultaneously creating 75 direct jobs and 250 indirect jobs. To achieve this goal, FERR-BF will finance a portfolio of SMEs and micro enterprises providing renewable energy solutions that generate income and / or FSPs.
The RRIF-BF will be managed by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF / FENU) and is funded by the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.
The RRIF-BF focuses on projects that offer:
- Additionality: projects that are not easily funded by commercial sources of funding; and which will make themselves known throughout the sector, at large, and then bring about a radical change in the way modern energy products and services are offered and consumed by low-income people in Burkina Faso;
- Sustainability: Business ideas with a commercial vocation in which companies want to co-invest in the short and medium term, with the aim of attracting more commercial investments;
- Inclusiveness: Prioritize business models with women and youth as active members in the value chain, as consumers as well as owner / employer and employee / agent.
Funding Information
Funding amounts: from USD 50,000 to USD 200,000
Key Features of the Fund
- Target Market: The FERR-BF project targets the market that constitutes Burkina Faso with a focus on companies (ESCOs, PSP, PSF) which implement renewable energy products / services (photovoltaic solar, improved stoves) for:
- The income-generating activities of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with a focus on women and youth)
- The productive uses of the agricultural sector. Agricultural value chains (Rice, Corn, Cotton, Cashew, Shea, Honey, Cassava, Baobab, etc.) have priority,
- Other forms of productive use, including improved institutional stoves for example
- Finance / facilitate the target’s access to renewable energy solutions (photovoltaic solar, improved stoves) in order to strengthen and accelerate the growth of their productive activities. Payment service providers (PSP) and financial service providers (PSF) could be called upon through innovative services and products (digital finance and PAYG payment for example)
- Accepted forms of energy: The accepted forms of renewable energy are:
- PV solar energy
- Biomass: stoves of improved
- Preference for innovative PAYG systems / digital payment / consumer finance
- Considerations additional: FERR-BF is open to companies in all their stages of maturity:
- For the start-ups selected for the project, the RRIF-BF offers them technical assistance through incubators selected for this purpose
- For more or less mature companies, the RRIF-BF can offer a combination of:
- Grant
- Guarantees
- Loans
- Technical assistance
- For FSP / PSP, any proposal to strengthen their knowledge or practice in the renewable energy sector, and more specifically for productive use, is welcome. The RRIF-BF can offer a
- Grant
- Technical assistance by the selected incubators
- The RRIF-BF is looking for innovative solutions with a proven technique.
- The RRIF-BF is looking for solutions whose products are of good quality; with safeguards in place; installation, maintenance and repair service in place; training of consumers on the use of the products offered and preferred recycling solutions if possible.
In what cases can collaborate?
- Is your company operational and registered in Burkina Faso?
- Is your structure a company that offers energy services (ESCO) in the solar energy or clean cooking sector (including improved stoves) with innovative solutions that generate income and which are or can enter the Burkinabé market from the third quarter of 2020?
- Is your structure a company that offers energy services (ESCO) in the solar energy or clean cooking sector (including improved stoves) through business models adapted to the market and innovative solutions payment?
- Does your business need technical assistance or funding to better serve end users?
- Are you a Financial Services Provider (PSP) who would like to strengthen its portfolio of services / products offered for productive activities in the renewable energy sector?
For more information, visit https://www.uncdf.org/article/5351/ferr-bf