Ideas for SDG7 progress: Sharing outcomes from the 2019 SEforALL Charrettes

Clean Cooking Charrette: What is required to create a sustainable, investable, private sector-led market for fuels for clean cooking?

This charrette centered on the issue of market viability and the widespread deployment of clean cooking solutions to reach the 2.9 billion people on the planet who currently do not have access. The solutions conceived include:

• Clean Cooking Market Catalyst, which seeks to align donors on a common vision and approach to prove the viability of and scale the clean cooking market.
• Clean Cooking Government Challenge Fund, which would incentivize governments to enable clean cooking by tackling policy and commitment barriers.
• The Next Generation Solutions Data Platform, which would provide an open, accurate and timely data platform to drive the decisions of investors, enterprises and governments to allocate resources and funding to viable and scalable solutions.

Data and Evidence Charrette: How do we improve the data and evidence on who and where they are, what they need, and what is working and why in order to improve decision-making and speed progress?

This charrette addressed the issues of how to identify, collect and utilize the right data for both the public and private sectors in order to drive the decision-making to scale up electrification. The solutions conceived include:

• Fulfilling Data Needs, which would focus on data collection that aligns the needs of delivery stakeholders with an informed view of the electricity user.
• Data Collection and Management, which would integrate different data sources into a single platform validated by peer-review and crowdsourcing.
• Disseminating Evidence, which would provide decision-makers with evidence and impact options for the systemic value of universal access to quality electricity.

Bridging the Gap Charrette: What is required to bridge the gap between supply and demand for appropriate finance for electricity access in those countries with the largest energy access deficits—i.e. the high-impact countries (HICs)—to meet SDG7?

The charrette explored instruments that could help bridge the gap between supply and demand for electricity access finance. The solutions conceived include:

• DFIs for Universal Energy Access, which would prioritize “development” in development finance institutions (DFIs) through an operational partnership focusing on the electrification target of SDG7.
• Energy Access for 100 Million People, which is envisioned as $1 billion of first-loss capital showcased through an online platform and leveraging additional sources of capital.
• Domestic Finance for Energy Access, proposed as the Renewable Energy Access to Local (REAL) Finance Accelerators, which would mobilize domestic sources of finance for energy entrepreneurs.

Last Mile Charrette: What changes are necessary within the finance sector (including development finance) to increase risk appetite to fund market-based last-mile electricity access?

The priority of this charrette was on how to electrify those last-mile communities that won’t be reached by business-as-usual approaches due to income, remoteness or social exclusion. The solutions conceived include:

• Last Mile First, which is premised on the notion that access to electricity is a public good and on country commitments to redirect fossil fuel subsidies to a Last Mile Service Fund.
• Leave No School or Clinic Behind, which would provide adequate and reliable electricity to power critical services for public health and education facilities.
• Mini-Grid Finance Platform Association, which seeks to expand the mini-grid financial product offering and close information gaps through improved coordination and knowledge sharing among mini-grid developers.  

These disruptive solutions will continue to evolve in the coming weeks and months and will require a larger network of support to implement. We invite the broader sustainable energy for all movement to consider how you can contribute and support this work. Details for each of these solutions and how to get involved in their implementation can be found in the published report.