Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SUNNY (SUstaiNable eNergy sYstems for refugee and host communities in Africa)
Période du rapport: 2024-06-01 au 2025-09-30
By the end of 2024, an estimated 123 million persons worldwide were displaced, reflecting a continued rise in global displacement. Across camps and settlements, most displaced persons lack access to modern energy: around 94% of those living in camps have no electricity, and roughly 81% rely on basic, polluting fuels for cooking. As a result, displaced persons face heightened protection risks, health problems from unsafe cooking and lighting, and reduced opportunities to study, work, and rebuild their livelihoods—conditions that frame the need for integrated energy solutions such as those pursued by the SUNNY project.
The overall objective of SUNNY is to sustainably improve access to energy services for rural and displaced communities in Rwanda and Uganda by generating innovations in local energy systems. The project applies an integrated approach to address energy needs and, based on circular-economy principles, develops supporting systems that complement existing local value chains. At local level, interventions are tailored to context through co-design; at institutional level, the replication of developed innovations is systematically advanced.
A diverse consortium underpins this wide scope of activities. Gathering 17 partners from 3 African, 5 European and 2 associated countries, SUNNY is a 48-month project that aims to provide replicable solutions for the green energy transition and energy access in Africa. To reach this goal, five renewable energy technologies (reaching TRL 7–8) are being improved, adapted to the local context, and demonstrated at two sites in Uganda and Rwanda, reaching around 1,300 refugees and persons in nearby host communities.
The overall objective of SUNNY is to sustainably improve access to energy services for rural and displaced communities in Rwanda and Uganda by generating innovations in local energy systems. The project applies an integrated approach to address energy needs and, based on circular-economy principles, develops supporting systems that complement existing local value chains. At local level, interventions are tailored to context through co-design; at institutional level, the replication of developed innovations is systematically advanced.
A diverse consortium underpins this wide scope of activities. Gathering 17 partners from 3 African, 5 European and 2 associated countries, SUNNY is a 48-month project that aims to provide replicable solutions for the green energy transition and energy access in Africa. To reach this goal, five renewable energy technologies (reaching TRL 7–8) are being improved, adapted to the local context, and demonstrated at two sites in Uganda and Rwanda, reaching around 1,300 refugees and persons in nearby host communities.
In the first reporting period the SUNNY project built the foundations needed to design, test, and later scale sustainable energy solutions in displacement settings in Rwanda and Uganda.
The work on context and evidence created a solid knowledge base on how people use energy, their socio-economic situation, local institutions, and the environment. This included literature reviews, mapping of previous interventions, field visits, participatory workshops, and a 700-household survey in refugee and host communities. SUNNY analysed national and local rules for energy provision, mapped waste and biowaste flows, and translated these insights into requirements for the SUNNY technologies. An eco-design toolkit and a structured way of defining use cases were prepared so that technical, social, environmental, and business aspects could be considered together.
The work on capacity building and co-creation identified training needs for different groups (e.g. users, local technicians, institutions) and drafted an overall training programme. Approaches for involving communities and local actors more actively in planning and testing the solutions were developed. Initial activities on circularity and local value chains started, including mapping of repair and recycling structures and a first practical repair training.
On the technology side, SUNNY agreed a design and validation roadmap and clarified how partners would collaborate on adapting and upgrading the different solutions (clean cooking, solar home systems, refrigeration, biogas, and irrigation). A study in Uganda with more than 200 participants assessed how households use energy in the context of the water-energy-food nexus and what they need for cooking, cooling, and irrigation, providing concrete parameters for the design of the SUNNY systems.
Preparatory work also progressed for later implementation, monitoring, and impact assessment. This included planning demonstration activities and sites, outlining how technical, environmental, social, and economic impacts would be measured, and designing approaches to analyse gender and socio-economic effects.
SUNNY advanced its market and business work by developing and testing tools to understand purchasing power and willingness to pay. Initial fieldwork in both demonstration sites confirmed strong demand for cleaner energy solutions and a clear interest in flexible payment models such as pay-as-you-go, especially among women-led households. A range of possible financing mechanisms was mapped to identify options that could make SUNNY solutions more affordable.
Visibility and networking were strengthened through a visual identity, website, social media, communication materials, and participation in events in Europe and Africa. SUNNY also connected with related initiatives and prepared a board to support replication of successful approaches.
Project management, ethics, and data management structures were put in place, including regular coordination meetings, a shared online workspace, ethics approvals in both countries, and the first Data Management Plan. Work scheduled to start later was aligned with these early findings so that upcoming activities build directly on the evidence from the first reporting period.
The work on context and evidence created a solid knowledge base on how people use energy, their socio-economic situation, local institutions, and the environment. This included literature reviews, mapping of previous interventions, field visits, participatory workshops, and a 700-household survey in refugee and host communities. SUNNY analysed national and local rules for energy provision, mapped waste and biowaste flows, and translated these insights into requirements for the SUNNY technologies. An eco-design toolkit and a structured way of defining use cases were prepared so that technical, social, environmental, and business aspects could be considered together.
The work on capacity building and co-creation identified training needs for different groups (e.g. users, local technicians, institutions) and drafted an overall training programme. Approaches for involving communities and local actors more actively in planning and testing the solutions were developed. Initial activities on circularity and local value chains started, including mapping of repair and recycling structures and a first practical repair training.
On the technology side, SUNNY agreed a design and validation roadmap and clarified how partners would collaborate on adapting and upgrading the different solutions (clean cooking, solar home systems, refrigeration, biogas, and irrigation). A study in Uganda with more than 200 participants assessed how households use energy in the context of the water-energy-food nexus and what they need for cooking, cooling, and irrigation, providing concrete parameters for the design of the SUNNY systems.
Preparatory work also progressed for later implementation, monitoring, and impact assessment. This included planning demonstration activities and sites, outlining how technical, environmental, social, and economic impacts would be measured, and designing approaches to analyse gender and socio-economic effects.
SUNNY advanced its market and business work by developing and testing tools to understand purchasing power and willingness to pay. Initial fieldwork in both demonstration sites confirmed strong demand for cleaner energy solutions and a clear interest in flexible payment models such as pay-as-you-go, especially among women-led households. A range of possible financing mechanisms was mapped to identify options that could make SUNNY solutions more affordable.
Visibility and networking were strengthened through a visual identity, website, social media, communication materials, and participation in events in Europe and Africa. SUNNY also connected with related initiatives and prepared a board to support replication of successful approaches.
Project management, ethics, and data management structures were put in place, including regular coordination meetings, a shared online workspace, ethics approvals in both countries, and the first Data Management Plan. Work scheduled to start later was aligned with these early findings so that upcoming activities build directly on the evidence from the first reporting period.
Beyond the state of the art, SUNNY advanced a more integrated and evidence-informed way of working on energy access in displacement settings. It brought together contextual analysis, technology design, circularity, capacity building, and market and finance considerations within one overall approach.
SUNNY refined a three-part way of understanding context that considered systems and infrastructure, people and their daily practices, and the wider policy and institutional environment. By combining workshops, surveys, mapping exercises, and environmental analysis, the project turned this information into clear requirements for how the SUNNY solutions should be designed and adapted to local realities.
The project also strengthened the link between technology design and circularity. The eco-design toolkit and work on local repair and recycling helped to align product choices with existing skills, waste management options, and opportunities for reuse and repair. This laid the ground for energy systems that are more durable and better anchored in local value chains, rather than relying only on imported equipment and one-off installations.
In its work with communities and local actors, SUNNY moved from one-time consultations towards more continuous dialogue and joint problem-solving. Users, community representatives, local institutions, and project partners were involved in identifying needs, discussing possible solutions, and adjusting plans over time. Social-network and community mapping supported this by showing which actors and support structures could be engaged for communication, training, and long-term service provision.
Finally, SUNNY developed a more integrated view of markets, finance, and policy in displacement settings. By linking data on willingness to pay and purchasing power with a structured overview of available finance instruments, the project highlighted how mechanisms such as pay-as-you-go, humanitarian cash transfers, microfinance, and results-based finance could be combined to support more inclusive business models for clean cooking, solar home systems, cold chains, and irrigation.
SUNNY refined a three-part way of understanding context that considered systems and infrastructure, people and their daily practices, and the wider policy and institutional environment. By combining workshops, surveys, mapping exercises, and environmental analysis, the project turned this information into clear requirements for how the SUNNY solutions should be designed and adapted to local realities.
The project also strengthened the link between technology design and circularity. The eco-design toolkit and work on local repair and recycling helped to align product choices with existing skills, waste management options, and opportunities for reuse and repair. This laid the ground for energy systems that are more durable and better anchored in local value chains, rather than relying only on imported equipment and one-off installations.
In its work with communities and local actors, SUNNY moved from one-time consultations towards more continuous dialogue and joint problem-solving. Users, community representatives, local institutions, and project partners were involved in identifying needs, discussing possible solutions, and adjusting plans over time. Social-network and community mapping supported this by showing which actors and support structures could be engaged for communication, training, and long-term service provision.
Finally, SUNNY developed a more integrated view of markets, finance, and policy in displacement settings. By linking data on willingness to pay and purchasing power with a structured overview of available finance instruments, the project highlighted how mechanisms such as pay-as-you-go, humanitarian cash transfers, microfinance, and results-based finance could be combined to support more inclusive business models for clean cooking, solar home systems, cold chains, and irrigation.