According to the World Bank, around 42% of Ugandans live on less than $2.15 per day. Rural families, especially women, face long hours collecting firewood and cooking over smoky open fires. The lack of access to clean cooking remains very acute in sub-Saharan Africa with only 17% of the population having clean cooking access. These aren’t just environmental challenges; they’re deep, structural issues of time, health, equity, and access.

Almost 490,000 premature deaths per year are related to household air pollution from the lack of access to clean cooking facilities, with women and children the worst affected. That’s why clean cookstoves are not solely a climate solution – they are a societal one.

The purpose of the project is to support clean cooking interventions that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the burning of non-renewable woody biomass and/or charcoal for cooking in Uganda. This involves technologies such as Ethanol stove, Electric cooktop/cooker, LPG and energy-efficient biomass Improved Cookstoves (ICS).

UpEnergy

UpEnergy, headquartered in Uganda, is at the forefront of this change, fighting energy poverty and climate change by delivering affordable, life-improving technologies to low-income communities across Africa.

They are responsible for every part of the project, from the engineering and continuous R&D of the stoves to data analytics, MRV, carbon finance, and registry compliance.

The entire stove manufacturing process is done in-house, including sourcing, moulding, and crafting the clay and metal bases, as well as painting and final assembly. Even the distribution centres and sales teams are fully localised and managed internally. It’s an incredibly impressive, self-sufficient operation, and we were fortunate to tag along during our site visit to see how each sector functions seamlessly together.