Solar Saving Circles Project

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), an estimated 600 million people in Africa, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, lack access to electricity, and over 900 million people lack access to clean cooking. As Ajay Banga, president of the World Bank Group recently described the problem, “Without electricity, we can’t get jobs, health care or skills. The success of electrification is foundational to everything.”

Our newest project for 2025 is the Solar Saving Circles Initiative which focuses on these two interrelated problems — the lack of energy access and lack of access to clean cooking in off-grid, rural African communities — and helps address the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 7: Universal access to clean and modern energy. Our project also impacts SDG1: No Poverty, SDG4: Quality Education, SDG5: Gender Equality and SDG13: Climate Action.

The Solar Saving Circles project is a blockchain-based solution that combines traditional savings groups + blockchain technology + local partnerships to empower entrepreneurial women in Africa with solar power and productive appliances to enable: 

*Energy independence

*Financial sovereignty

*Community resilience including the ability to adapt and respond to climate change

This Initiative is an emergent model that we will pilot with 5 JUKUMU Tanzania savings groups this quarter (Q2) with a total of 100 women, and that we have already launched with one savings group and a local partner, Helpers Social Development Foundation, in Nigeria. The project aims to help women in Africa experience the tangible benefits of solar power and progress along the solar energy adoption pathway—from solar lanterns to home systems, and from productive appliances such as drip irrigation systems and refrigerators to solar-powered electric pressure cookers and e-mobility solutions.

The Solar Foundation is collaborating with two technology partners on this holistic solution:

1. NEDA Labs' WashikaDAO protocol, a decentralized governance, savings and lending solution developed in Tanzania expressly for local savings groups in Africa;

2. Atlantis' Impact Foundry platform for participants to provide feedback and testimonials as well as to learn about solar energy and solar-powered appliances + digital and financial skills, enabling them to earn more funds for their community pools while also contributing to the ongoing development and improvement of the project.

The ultimate goal of the Solar Saving Circles project is to establish a cooperative network of circles across Uganda, Tanzania and Nigeria, managed by local partners. These interconnected groups will share knowledge, experiences and measurable impact, helping to attract additional resources and support for further initiatives including internet access, clean water solutions and new business opportunities.

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