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Training supports aspiring clean cooking entrepreneurs as they grow and scale up

The Clean Cooking Finance Masterclass - ‘Going to Scale’ was a one day business development training organised during the Clean Cooking Forum in Accra on 10 October 2022. In its third iteration (previously organised by Energising Development and GET.invest in 2019 and 2021), the masterclass was hosted by Energy Enterprise Coach (a brand new NIRAS- and Intellecap-implemented initiative by RVO and Energising Development) and GET.invest, with support from the Clean Cooking Alliance (CCA).

October 19, 2022

This edition of the Clean Cooking Masterclass brought together early stage SMEs in the clean cooking and biogas sectors to enhance their business development skills and learn about scaling up. Ten aspiring growth-minded clean cooking entrepreneurs from across five countries (Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Zambia and Benin) were competitively selected from an application pool of over 90 applicants to participate in the event that allowed peers and sector champions from across Africa to share experiences.

"The masterclass provided a knowledge sharing platform for entrepreneurs and business coaches to reflect and discuss the critical elements for start ups to scale up."

Daniel Mungai, Home Biogas, Kenya

The Masterclass covered topics related to the ‘Going to Scale’ process such as business development foundations, essentials of business planning, basics of financial modelling and accessing finance. The training covered both theory-based learning and hands-on exercises, designed to enable participants to put theory to practice and engage in peer-to-peer interactions and sharing lessons learned. The participants also had the opportunity to engage with an investor, Energise Africa, to understand a financier’s perspective on investing in clean cooking businesses.

The masterclass was the first of many planned Energy Enterprise Coach (EEC) business development services to support professionalisation of clean energy entrepreneurs to foster their growth and development.

Following the Masterclass, all the participants had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the Clean Cooking Forum, engaging in networking, B-2-B matchmaking and gaining first hand insights into innovations, new developments and opportunities emerging in the sector.

"The masterclass was the greatest opportunity for me as I lead Kukula Solar towards scale. The training delivered on financial modelling, pitching and business planning were easy to understand and practical. Thanks to organisers for investing in me."

Francis Mbewe, Kukula Solar, Zambia

EEC is a Business Development Support (BDS) facility setup to support renewable energy SMEs operating in countries supported by partner programmes (Africa Biogas Component (ABC), Higher-Tier Cooking Component (HTCC), and the Energising Development (EnDev) Partnership). The EEC aims to support enterprises in their journey towards professionalisation, enabling them to progress towards scaling up and investment readiness. Learn more here and for any questions, please reach out to EECoach@niras.dk.

GET.invest is a European programme which supports investments in renewable energy. The programme targets private sector business and project developers, financiers and regulators to build sustainable energy markets in partner countries. Services include market information, a funding database, matchmaking events and finance access advisory. The programme is supported by the European Union, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Austria, and works closely with initiatives and business associations in the energy sector. Learn more here and for any questions, please reach out to info@get-invest.eu.