Africa Clean Energy (ACE) Business The Africa Clean Energy (ACE) Business programme will catalyse a market-based approach for private sector delivery of solar home system (SHS) products and services. This will lead to improved energy access for people and communities in sub-Saharan Africa currently without modern energy, with an emphasis on poor people and marginalised groups This Africa regional programme will help enterprises across Africa to supply off-grid energy products and services; and help put in place the enabling environment that facilities a market based approach to off-grid renewable energy. The ACE Business programme focuses exclusively on developing a market for individual solar home systems. It does not include community-wide and larger mini-grids, for which other DFID programmes are providing assistance. It will also exclude single solar lanterns, which have less potential than solar home systems to be transformational. Making solar home systems affordable for poorer people is an important focus for the programme. The programme will complement, not duplicate, DFID's existing programmes and related initiatives of other donors. The programme aims to overcome many of the barriers preventing the development of markets for solar home systems This regional programme would cover a range of countries where DFID is looking to support the Energy Africa campaign. The countries would be selected from: Mozambique, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana and Sierra Leone. The programme will cover the above 14 priority countries of the Energy Africa Campaign, where governments have signalled commitment to enabling a market-based approach to household solar programme includes two components that will be implemented by suppliers selected through a competitive process. Component 1: Technical Assistance (TA) for the Enabling Environment and Learning Facility The TA and Learning Facility will support the implementation of policy, regulatory and other actions developed by the Energy Africa Compacts. These aim to improve the enabling environment for a market-based approach to private sector delivery of solar home system (SHS) products and services. This includes: — Policy and regulatory reform: assisting governments to put in place appropriate policies and regulations, — Learning: generating and disseminating knowledge and evidence on the success factors for, and benefits of, private sector delivery of off-grid solar energy across Africa, including the application of learning — Coordination: promoting collaboration between ACE Business interventions and other relevant initiatives, and encouraging other donors to contribute towards ACE objectives and activities Component 2: Competitive Business Facility (CBF) The CBF will provide support to businesses providing SHS products and services that are in their start-up and early commercialisation phase, or more established businesses entering new markets in sub-Saharan Africa (geographically or in terms of market segment). Enterprises will be selected for support through a competitive process, where businesses compete for assistance. Support to each enterprise may include either, or both, of: — Technical assistance: supporting businesses to improve their capabilities and skills to develop, grow and take advantage of market opportunities e.g. undertaking market analysis, and developing their products, ideas, and business plans — Financing: providing access to pioneer grant financing to enterprises in their start-up and early commercialisation, and expansion phase (e.g. through partial match-funded grants) for early-stage proof of concept, enterprise start-up, business development or geographical expansion.
