Bringing electricity and connectivity to the poorest and most rural areas of East Africa, at a price equivalent to a phone subscription. That is what M-Kopa does — M stands for "mobile", Kopa for "on loan" — a Nairobi-based company that since 2012 has already brought energy to 200,000 families in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

The kit in use. © M-Kopa

M-Kopa supplies a kit comprising an 8-watt photovoltaic panel, 2 LED lights with a switch and dimmer, a portable solar lamp, a USB charger for 5 devices and a solar-powered radio. All of this for an initial deposit of around €20 and a subscription of 30 cents a day. The kit pays for itself within a year. It could be compared to our "handset included" deals: with an initial deposit and a subscription, you get a smartphone at a discounted price and pay for it essentially in instalments.

Inside one of the points of sale. © M-Kopa

The African system, thanks to the GSM network, collects all data in real time, monitoring performance and consumption in real time. Technology, big data and connectivity together deliver electricity to the poorest sections of the population at affordable prices.

The kit brings light into homes. © M-Kopa

When one considers the 1.3 billion people who still have no access to electricity today (IEA source), it becomes clear just how important systems such as M-Kopa can be — systems that work precisely on expanding access to electricity. So much so that the official website states they supply 500 new systems every day.

The success of the application has travelled the world, to the point that M-Kopa has won numerous awards dedicated to sustainable finance and sustainable energy. But there is more: during the Global Entrepreneurship Summit held in Nairobi last July, President Obama personally congratulated June Muli, Head of Customer Care, recalling that: "After one year of payments, for the next 7 years you will have energy and light at home, and you will be able to charge phones at a cost of 40 cents ($) a day. The same cost as kerosene."