Progress toward universal access to clean cooking, a key aspect of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7, remains slow, particularly in Africa, where 900 million people still rely on traditional fuels. This reliance negatively affects health, social and economic development, and the environment. Limited access to finance is a major barrier, with existing datasets lacking detailed project-level information, making it difficult for governments, development banks, and private investors to track investments and allocate capital effectively. Improving the clarity and availability of financing data is therefore a priority.
A study in Tanzania assessed the financing landscape for clean cooking by examining companies across the supply chain, their funding sources, mechanisms, and access to finance. Interviews with key stakeholders and a survey of 61 organisations yielded 19 responses, providing a comprehensive view of available financing and future sector needs. The clean cooking sector in Tanzania is dominated by small micro-enterprises offering improved biomass cookstoves, briquettes, and electric cooking appliances. Most companies employ fewer than 10 full-time staff, with limited turnover and reliance on personal savings or small grants and loans, while access to equity or carbon financing is rare.
Survey results show that funding tends to favour well-established companies, leaving small and early-stage enterprises disadvantaged. Many micro-enterprises lack business skills, financial documentation, and investment readiness, limiting their eligibility for commercial finance. High interest rates, collateral requirements, and preference for grants further restrict growth opportunities. Technical capacity is also a challenge, with local cookstoves often lacking quality certification and limited availability of skilled maintenance providers. Marketing and customer outreach skills are also in short supply.
Government commitment to clean cooking in Tanzania has increased, highlighted by the publication of the National Clean Cooking Strategy in 2023, which sets targets for various technologies and links clean cooking with electrification. Key institutions such as the Ministry of Energy, the Renewable Energy and Alternative Technologies Office, TANESCO, the National Carbon Monitoring Centre, and PO-RALG are central to strategy implementation, alongside NGOs like TAREA and TACCS. The strategy provides a framework for policy, coordination, capacity building, and monitoring of clean cooking initiatives nationwide.
Tanzania’s clean cooking market remains nascent and fragmented, with biomass fuels still dominant. Access to clean fuels in 2023 was only 10%, higher in urban areas but extremely low in rural regions. Achieving universal access will require substantial investment, with government and World Bank estimates ranging from USD 180 million to USD 850 million per year. Limited household demand, small and informal enterprises, and a lack of professional management hinder market growth, although subsidies for LPG and plans for other technologies are expanding options.
Clean cooking companies in Tanzania are mostly small and micro-enterprises, with a few larger players focusing on LPG, eCooking, and improved cookstoves. International support from UNIDO, MECS, and other development partners has promoted technologies like ethanol stoves and eCooking, linking these efforts to rural electrification and national energy goals. Financing options, including grants, loans, carbon financing, and results-based funding, exist but are often inaccessible to smaller firms due to strict requirements and administrative barriers. Programs such as CookFund, MECS, MCFA, and the World Bank’s REA initiative provide technical assistance and financing but face challenges in identifying eligible SMEs.
Future financing schemes are being planned by the EU, AfDB, and other partners, focusing on grants, concessional loans, and eCooking promotion. However, the sector’s growth depends on building the capacity of small enterprises to manage external financing, improving manufacturing and maintenance capabilities, and creating locally produced solutions to meet demand. Investment should be targeted toward companies with growth potential while recognising that some NGOs and micro-enterprises are not aiming for profit or expansion. Strengthening the sector will require long-term capacity building, tailored financing instruments, and coordinated support from government, financiers, and associations.
The report highlights that Tanzania has the necessary stakeholders and institutional frameworks to advance clean cooking, but bridging the financing gap, strengthening technical and business capacity, and fostering professional, growth-oriented companies are essential to achieving a sustainable and scalable clean cooking transition across the country.
