13 years of impact in Ghana
In September 2019, EnDev ended its interventions in Ghana after 13 years of successful implementation. A Closing Report illuminates the impact in the area of Productive Use of Energy.
Supporting small enterprises and farmers in rural areas to take up electricity and appliances for their businesses remains a key success factor for reaching SDG 7. The lessons-learned for supporting Productive Use of Energy (PUE) made during the EnDev Ghana intervention therefore continue to be used within the programme and its partner organisations.
As the report suggest, the going was not always easy. Entrepreneurs face a wide array of challenges, and the energy supply is only one of them. Yet, now more than ever, EnDev partners and other energy access programs are making PUE a main pillar of their support so that sustainable energy access and economic development can go hand-in-hand.
The Closing Report describes successes and lessons-learned from four components:
- Support to micro to small companies by the facilitation of energy and other infrastructure services in light industrial areas in 18 districts in Ghana
- Grid extension for small-holder irrigation
- The introduction and facilitation of solar powered irrigation systems for smallholder farmers
- The introduction and promotion of improved stoves for smallholder food-processing
In Ghana and many African countries, support for better smallholder agro-processing technologies and affordable solar irrigation systems continues to gain traction. Methods to support more diverse income generation in towns in the formal to semi-formal sector with improved infrastructure services also continues to be relevant. The recent EnDev publication “Productive Use of Energy: Moving to scalable business cases” describes an Ecosystem Approach needed to support small enterprises, which echo the experiences made under EnDev Ghana.
