Projects

The Access to Modern Energy Services in Mozambique (AMES-M) programme, implemented in the context of the Dutch-German partnership called Energising Development, aims to increase sustainable access to modern forms of energy in Mozambique. The second phase of AMES-M started in November 2009 and will end in December 2012.

In order to enhance the economic development and poverty reduction outcomes of the programme, the programme team decided to add a productive energy use component in 2011. As a first step a three-day expert workshop on Strategies for Promoting Productive Use of Electricity in Mozambique was organised by AMES-M in May 2011. The objective of the workshop was to develop jointly with the concerned local and national level stakeholders a strategy for productive energy use promotion in the agriculture sector in the Manica province. As a follow-up to the workshop, participants were encouraged to work out proposals for specific productive use opportunities to be promoted in the Manica province, which would then be considered to receive capacity development support by AMES-M. Six local institutions submitted their ideas to the AMES-M team a few weeks after the workshop, including an irrigation project for potato cultivation, hydro-powered maize milling and wheat de-husking, and multi-functional platforms. As a result of the workshop, two irrigation projects using a ram-pump have been implemented by AMES-M after an analysis of the productive use business ideas.

The overall productive use promotion strategy developed under AMES-M is to support start-ups in a number of feasible and replicable productive activities that depend on energy in collaboration with commercial banks for funding initial investments. Cooperation with a local bank and the German Development Bank KfW is in preparation in order to identify the most viable productive uses in the agriculture sector and realize first projects financed with a bank loan to be repaid by the private project operator. By showcasing working business models, the programme hopes to stimulate productive use activities on a larger scale throughout the province.

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH

Energising Development

http://endev.info/index.php/Mozambique
Productive_Energy_Use_(Exploring_Options)_in_Mozambique

Charles Chidamba