Portfolio Learning

Productive use of off-grid energy: The business case in Uganda’s dairy value chain

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Off-grid energy solutions continue to take hold in Uganda, though 30% of the population is still expected to lack access to electricity by 2030.

Affordability remains a challenge to the uptake of off-grid energy. Increased ‘productive use’ of energy has the potential to increase productivity and income, thereby driving further uptake in off-grid energy. These productive use applications have significant potential in agriculture, a sector which employs over 70% of the population.

This research paper authored by the Uganda Off-Grid Energy Market Accelerator (UOMA) assesses the potential for productive use of energy in dairy. Off-grid energy solutions are well suited for production and collection in rural areas with smaller scale production. 20-40% of all milk production in Uganda is wasted due to lack of timely cooling. This paper explores the economics, business models, case study learnings, and next steps to capitalize on this opportunity.

Download the report (pdf, 833kb)

DFID and USAID logos

UOMA is a neutral intermediary that we co-created in partnership with Open Capital Advisors in 2017 with joint funding from the UK Government and USAID, focused on accelerating the growth of off-grid energy access in Uganda to enable universal energy access through three activities:

  • Research and insights
  • Industry coordination
  • Direct technical assistance