Start up hopes to get 1.2 billion people out of energy poverty
Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
Crowdfunding platform TRINE connects people with a disposable income to solar power entrepreneurs in Africa.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
TRINE hopes the initiative will help bring power to 1.2 billion people globally without electricity.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
People can use the platform either to buy Christmas vouchers as a gift, or invest money directly. Recipients of a Christmas voucher can invest the amount in a solar energy project in East Africa.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
The company hopes the investment will open up business opportunities for African entrepreneurs who sell solar power kits.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
Once a project is funded, TRINE lends the money to the entrepreneur who uses the money to buy solar kits.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
Powered by either a microgrid or a small individual solar panel placed on the roof, the kits are used to power household appliances.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
Most kits include solar-powered lamps. The company has eight projects in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Senegal.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
The end users typically live off the grid in rural areas where kerosene lamps and other fuels such as coal and wood are often used to power a household.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
Kerosene lamps may cause health risks such as burns and poisoning from fuel ingestion, according to the World Health Organization.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
The customers pay the solar partners via mobile payment such as M-PESA, often with a monthly payment plan over a number of years.
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Photos: Can crowd investment help power East Africa?
The solar partners start making loan repayments to TRINE after a period of between six months and two years, depending on the project, which is when the investors can expect to start seeing returns of around 6%, assuming the project is successful.
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