The falling costs of solar panels and progress with development of new and more cost-effective battery technologies have made off-grid solutions the preferred least cost technology for electrification in many rural settings across Africa. However, several barriers impede the development of off-grid energy sources. The literature on these barriers to off-grid energy development is growing but evidence on the perspective of mostly private off-grid energy firms remains limited, and there is little systematic evidence collected from large or representative samples of such organizations.

We studied barriers and opportunities for off-grid sector development in four countries in East Africa: Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.