{"id":34803,"date":"2025-08-21T15:50:14","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T13:50:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.geres.eu\/?post_type=project&p=34803"},"modified":"2025-08-21T15:50:17","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T13:50:17","slug":"promoting-entrepreneurship-and-food-security-through-access-to-sustainable-energy","status":"publish","type":"project","link":"https:\/\/www.geres.eu\/en\/our-actions\/our-projects\/promoting-entrepreneurship-and-food-security-through-access-to-sustainable-energy\/","title":{"rendered":"Promoting entrepreneurship and food security through access to sustainable energy in Sierra Leone"},"content":{"rendered":"

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In 2025, Geres launched an ambitious project in Sierra Leone called Energy4Business (E4B), which aims to provide sustainable and affordable access to energy in order to stimulate local economic development, improve food security, and reduce the drudgery of work, particularly for women. By promoting low-carbon energy solutions, the project aims to strengthen community resilience, capitalize on existing electrification efforts, and offer tailored supplements for productive activities.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ custom_padding_last_edited=”on|tablet” _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”0px||0px|||” custom_padding_tablet=”|20px||20px” custom_padding_phone=”” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row module_class=”content-page-article” _builder_version=”4.16″ width=”100%” max_width=”768px” module_alignment=”center” custom_padding=”9px||7px|||” saved_tabs=”all” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ header_font=”||||||||” header_2_font=”||||||||” header_2_line_height=”1.3em” custom_margin=”||36px|||” custom_padding=”0px|0px||0px||” custom_padding_tablet=”|0px||0px” custom_padding_phone=”” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|tablet” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n

A low development index, exponential inflation, and a still fragile agricultural sector<\/h2>\n

Context<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

Sierra Leone, ranked 181 out of 195 on the development index, faces significant socioeconomic challenges.<\/strong><\/a> Half of its population lives below the poverty line, and since 2022, the country has experienced exponential inflation due to the significant devaluation of its currency, the Leone. GDP growth is estimated at 5.7% when the informal sector is included, which in 2023 represented between 87% and 95% of the entities surveyed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The agricultural sector contributes 30% of GDP, with 86% of jobs in the informal sector. Most farms are family-run, while the private sector and cooperatives cover only 24% of the land. The majority of farmers (60%) are still illiterate and poorly trained, and 90% of land is still irrigated manually, which limits yields.<\/span><\/p>\n

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95% of farmers say they have never received formal training in agriculture.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The main crops are rice, cassava, sweet potatoes, cocoa, corn, coffee, cashews, and peanuts.<\/strong> Livestock farming remains limited, dominated by poultry, sheep, and cattle<\/strong>. In 2023, 16,000 fish and shellfish farms were developed to complement fishing, which employed nearly 79,000 people.<\/span><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row module_class=”content-page-article” _builder_version=”4.16″ width=”100%” max_width=”768px” module_alignment=”center” custom_padding=”9px||7px|||” saved_tabs=”all” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n

Strengthening the electrification efforts initiated by the public authorities, involving all stakeholders.<\/h2>\n

Challenges<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

The Sierra Leone government’s policy aims to achieve 92% electrification across the country by 2030,<\/a> notably by focusing on public-private partnerships for the development of solar energy in rural areas. Efforts to date have focused on maintaining existing mini solar grids, expanding them, and creating 200 new mini grids. Existing mini grid operators still face persistent challenges such as currency devaluation, seasonality of energy demand and production, and undersized existing infrastructure.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The lack of adequate means of production prevents off-grid populations from promoting local production<\/strong>, increasing their incomes, and improving their economic resilience and autonomy.<\/strong> In addition, the lack of training for rural entrepreneurs and the lack of social intermediation between operators and customers contribute to the fragility of economic models, exacerbated by a high proportion of low-consumption customers.<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition, the lack of effective means of storing or processing agricultural crops is significant and has a serious impact on the various value chains. Women are particularly affected, as they are the ones who are most burdened by these tasks,<\/strong> which are generally assigned to them. Finally, the lack of education, training, and access to financing are major obstacles to the development of productive and income-generating activities, particularly in rural areas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Energy4Business project therefore seeks to overcome these obstacles in order to promote the development of rural businesses, productive groups, and cooperatives. This will help to retain the added value of local processing and generate significant socio-economic impacts, particularly in terms of jobs and access to local services.<\/strong><\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/www.geres.eu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/PHOTO-2025-05-13-17-31-25.jpg” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ _module_preset=”default” title_text=”PHOTO-2025-05-13-17-31-25″ hover_enabled=”0″ sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.27.4″ hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n

Improving energy supply and strengthening production and entrepreneurial capacity in rural areas <\/h2>\n

Solutions & objectives<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

The Energy4Business project offers an integrated approach, combining improvements to the energy supply with the strengthening of production resources and the entrepreneurial capacities of the population.<\/strong> This strategy is based on three specific objectives and solutions:<\/span><\/p>\n