The Climate Investment Funds (CIF), a multilateral climate finance vehicle, has endorsed Rwanda’s renewable energy investment plans, making the country eligible to benefit from $50 million (about Rwf37 billion) for renewable energy funding.

The funds are provided under the Scaling Up Renewable Energy in Low Income Countries Programme (SREP). 

SREP funding of $50 million is expected to help develop financially sustainable long-term markets for the private sector provision of off-grid electricity services in the country.

In a statement, released Thursday, senior SREP coordinator Zhihong Zhang said Rwanda has a very ambitious target of electrification through both on-grid and off-grid solutions.

"SREP support will target the development of off-grid energy markets to help bring electricity to unserved communities in rural areas, create employment opportunities and generate income,” Zhihong said.

Rwanda seeks to provide electricity access to 70 per cent of the population by 2018 through a wide range of renewable resources.

"SREP funding can act as a catalyst and will help improve the enabling environment conditions to unlock and systematically scale-up private investments,” Zhihong ssaid.

Robert Nyamvumba, the director of the energy division at the Ministry of Infrastructure, said the endorsement will help to unleash the potential of the private sector to provide off-grid energy solutions using renewable energy sources.

"SREP funding will mean many Rwandans living in rural areas will have access to energy and improve their lives through development activities as well as create an enabling environment for businesses in the communities,” Nyamvumba added.

PV solar system

The funding will help Rwanda develop stand-alone PV solar systems to provide off-grid power to 250,000 households and 175 social infrastructure projects such as health clinics and schools.

It will also work towards the target of having 80 per cent of households employing clean cooking energy technology like better stoves using pellets or biogas, rather than charcoal, among other projects.

CIF is providing 72 developing and middle income countries with urgently needed resources to mitigate and manage the challenges of climate change and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

The CIF allocates financing through four funding windows.

These include Scaling Up Renewable Energy in Low Income Countries Programme geared toward renewable energy solutions; Clean Technology Fund (CTF) that strives to ensure low carbon technologies; Forest Investment Programme (FIP) to promote sustainable forest management and Pilot Programme for Climate Resilience.

Renewable energy in Rwanda

Renewable energy is generally defined as energy that comes from resources which are naturally replenished on a human timescale, such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, and geothermal heat.

Rwanda has considerable opportunities for energy development – from hydro sources, methane gas, solar and peat deposits. Untapped resources for power generation amount to about 1,200MW.

Vision 2020 emphasises the need for economic growth, private investment and economic transformation supported by a reliable and affordable energy supply as a key factor for the development process.

The Vision 2020 energy target is to have at least 35 per cent of the population connected to electricity and to reduce the rate of wood use in national energy consumption from the current 94 to 50 per cent.