Last Updated on May 23, 2023
The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) is a multi-donor Special Fund managed by the African Development Bank. It provides catalytic finance to unlock private sector investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency.
SEFA offers technical assistance and concessional finance instruments to remove market barriers, build a more robust pipeline of projects and improve the risk-return profile of individual investments. The Fund’s overarching goal is to contribute to universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy services for all in Africa, in line with the New Deal on Energy for Africa and Sustainable Development Goal 7.
Established in 2011 in partnership with the government of Denmark, SEFA has since received contributions from the governments of the United States, United Kingdom, Italy, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Germany, and also from the Nordic Development Fund and the Global Energy Alliance from the People and Planet. SEFA is housed in the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Department (PERN) under the Power, Energy, Climate, and Green Growth (PEVP) complex.
Scope
SEFA supports interventions across three strategic priorities:
- Green baseload: Increasing the penetration of renewable energy in power systems, with a strong focus on power system stability, and delivering alternatives to fossil-fuel baseload generation options.
- Green mini-grids: Accelerating electricity access to underserved populations through clean energy mini-grid solutions.
- Energy efficiency: Improving the efficiency of energy services delivered through a variety of technologies and business models, also including clean cooking and pico-solar technologies.
Benefits
- Technical assistance: Support through grants with a strong focus on activities that will directly unlock investments. Technical assistance grants are available to public and private sector entities.
- Concessional investment: Support through results-based financing, loans, and equity instruments, often blended with African Development Bank investments to close viability gaps.
Eligibility
- Funding requests must be aligned with SEFA’s three strategic priorities: Green Baseload; Green Mini-Grids; Energy Efficiency.
- Special attention will be given to proposals which:
- are implemented in countries with limited renewable energy experience;
- present demonstration and replication potential, with “first-of-a-kind” features;
- provide cross-cutting benefits across several domains such as agriculture, education, food, gender, health, and water.
- Due consideration will also be given to aspects of economic and financial viability, namely through strong alignment with national plans and strategies, cost-competitiveness and quality of service, and ability to generate returns and attract additional investors.
- Finally, applications will be assessed across a range of indicators and anticipated development outputs and outcomes, including:
- commercial finance leveraged by the project;
- MW of sustainable energy generation installed (and/or degree of energy efficiency achieved);
- new jobs created, disaggregated by gender, and;
- annual GHG emission reductions delivered
Application
To submit a funding request, complete the application form and submit it to sefa.application@afdb.org
Click here for the application form
For more information, visit AfDB Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa.
Deadline: Rolling Basis