Ethiopian entrepreneurs in renewable energy sector win over $775,000 prize fund

Addis Ababa, September 24, 2021 (FBC) – Some 25 Ethiopian entrepreneurs who have promoted renewable energy technologies in rural areas of Ethiopia have been awarded with a total of over 775,000 USD prize fund.

The winners of the third and fourth round renewable energy technologies (RET) innovative ideas competition was announced this week.

The 25 entrepreneurs and enterprises will access a business incubation programme for investment in renewable energy technologies. In addition, each winner took home close to USD 31,500.

The award is part of a wider Renewable Energy Technologies (RET) project launched in 2015 to target 800,000 households and promote innovative solutions on renewable energy technologies for household use, particularly in the rural areas of Ethiopia. 

The project brought together UNDP, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Capital development fund (UNCDF) to support the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Energy (MoWIE) and the Ministry of Innovation and Technology (MiNT).

The project seeks to accelerate the adoption of Renewable Energy Technologies (RET) through strengthening regulatory and legal framework based on national standards, creating public demand and utilization of these RETs through awareness campaigns.

Over 56pct of Ethiopia’s population still do not have any access to electricity.