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Azuri Technologies – a British pay-as-you-go solar company – and Energise Africa – a UK-based crowdfunding platform – have announced plans to launch a campaign to raise £2.5 million from UK impact investors to deliver affordable, clean energy and help solve the energy crisis in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).

Azuri is expected to use the fund to invest in pay-as-you-go solar to provide energy to more than 100,000 people in the SSA region. The investment will focus on low-income families in Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia.

Over 600 million people across Africa live without access to electricity, thereby limiting their chances of achieving economic prosperity and having a quality life. The British companies said universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services, which is United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7, can only be achieved with access to sufficient investment. In 2018, Azuri and Energise Africa raised £1.7 million from hundreds of UK investors to deliver renewable energy products to more than 16,000 families in the Africa.

“With this innovative financing, thousands of more households will be able to access modern solar energy for the first time,” said Simon Bransfield, CEO of Azuri. “We are delighted to partner with Energise Africa and their community of UK-based retail investors to finance off-grid solar projects.”

Energise Africa – established by Ethex and Lendahand, two of the leading online investing platforms in Europe – aims to bring clean energy and economic opportunities to families in SSA through solar home systems and generate financial returns for investors.

Through Energise Africa, individuals in the UK can invest from as little as £50 in bonds, issued by solar businesses, to provide clean and affordable energy access, while targeting annual returns of up to 6 per cent.

The platform is also supported by UK Aid, Virgin Unite, Good Energies Foundation and P4G (Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030). Over the past 20 months, Energise Africa has raised over £7.57 million for 12 solar businesses to provide 312,000 people in 10 African countries with access to clean energy, preventing up to 70,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from entering the atmosphere annually. It has also repaid almost £1.8 million back to investors.

Lisa Ashford, Managing Director of Energise Africa, said, “We are committed to providing UK-based people with easily accessible opportunities to invest directly in sustainable businesses that can tackle climate change, create long-term social and environmental impact, and deliver a potential financial return. We are looking forward to the prospect of working with Azuri Technologies to help accelerate the achievement of the UN SDG 7.”