Low Energy Inclusive Appliances programme

As part of our work on LEIA, Energy Saving Trust co-chairs the Efficiency for Access Secretariat with CLASP.

Efficiency for Access is a global coalition working to promote high performing appliances that enable access to clean energy for the world’s poorest people. It is a catalyst for change, accelerating the growth of off-grid appliance markets to boost incomes, reduce carbon emissions, improve quality of life and support sustainable development.

Efficiency for Access consists of 15 Donor Roundtable Members, 10 Programme Partners, and more than 30 Investor Network members. Current Efficiency for Access Coalition members have programmes and initiatives spanning 44 countries and 22 key technologies.

LEIA is Efficiency for Access’ flagship programme.

Read our blog about our visit to Energy for Access projects in Kenya.

In accordance with the requirements of transparency from DFID, Energy Saving Trust has published all relevant data on the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI) website. You can find this data here.

Launched in November 2018, the Efficiency for Access Research and Development Fund aims to accelerate the availability, affordability, efficiency, and performance of a range of appliances that are particularly suited to developing country contexts and promote social inclusion.

In the past year, the Efficiency for Access Research and Development Fund has supported 35 organisations with over £5 million in funding and facilitated a further £1.5m to 12 electric cooking projects with funding from UK aid.

Find out more about the Research and Development Fund.

Delivered by Efficiency for Access, with the support of Engineers Without Borders UK, the Efficiency for Access Design Challenge is a global, multi-disciplinary competition that empowers teams of university students to help accelerate clean energy access.

To provide sustainable energy for all, we urgently need to enhance the efficiency and affordability of high performing appliances. The Challenge invites teams of university students to create affordable, high-performing off-grid appliances and enabling technologies. By bringing together and inspiring students, the competition aims to foster innovation in the off-grid appliances sector. It also seeks to help address barriers that limit market expansion in this area. Furthermore, the Challenge seeks to forge beneficial partnerships between universities, researchers and industry partners at a global level. In this way, it will further strengthen academic capacity within the off-grid sector.

Over 150 students from 23 universities in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Nepal, Sweden, and the United Kingdom participated in the first two years of the competition. Student teams developed 37 projects on different technologies like grain mills, fish dryers, electric cookers, vaccine refrigerators, oxygen concentrators, cooling systems, water treatment systems and more. The third year of the Challenge runs from September 2021 and will end with the Grand Final event in June 2022, where winning teams from the 30 participating universities will be announced.

You can read more about the Challenge.

Visit Efficiency for Access