The Northern town of Arua has grown so much that it has become one of Uganda’s newest cities. The now-city got its brand-new title on July 1st, 2020, highlighting its importance in the Eastern African economic sphere and also attracting many nearby villagers to its markets and facilities in a desolate part of the continent – one that straddles the borders with two other Least Developed Countries (LDCs): The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Sudan.

Although the town is now a fully-fledged city, sitting at the crossroads of the district’s trade routes and agricultural mainstays, the electricity grid still needs to reach all of its 72,400 residents, according to a 2020 census. Moreover, Arua hosts approximately 20 percent of all refugees entering Uganda.

Many corners of the West Nile’s largest city go dim after sunset, particularly affecting the outer edges of the city, where some subsistence farmers live. According to NTV Uganda: “Works around the city’s huge infrastructure projects, including factories and buildings under construction, have stalled and small businesses depend on generators to operate.”

The Government of Uganda is working to connect a transmission line, which is aimed at rein-forcing supply to the West Nile region, as well as connecting it to the national grid; however, until this is completed, many family and business activities come to a screeching halt when the sun sets.

This situation is why a company like Bright Life is essential for this part of Uganda. BrightLife is a triple-bottom-line Uganda-based social enterprise founded by global microfinance pioneer FINCA International. The company unlocks economic productivity and well-being for the base of the pyramid by bringing together access to finance and access to energy.

Bright Life uses innovative ways to supply off-grid locals with solar solutions with financing packages catering to local trends and capabilities. Bright Life’s business model offers clients an opportunity to transition into formal financial inclusion due to Bright Life’s partnership with FINCA Uganda. They are committed to being the most affordable, highest-quality next-generation energy company in Uganda.

Under this programme, unbanked Ugandan households that successfully repay Bright Life loans for a Solar Home System (SHS) product using Pay-Go financing and build a credit history. This credit history enables access to FINCA Uganda savings, loans, and other financial products. The scaling of a unique and digitally enabled partnership between a Pay-Go company and a financial institution is uncommon in East Africa.

This scale will allow a sustainable operational model and sustained outreach in Northern Uganda, which means families and businesses can harness the abundance of the African sun’s rays during the day to illuminate the night.

This is the case of Dezu Corrine, 28, who was not hesitant to proclaim that Bright Life changed her life. Corrine has subscribed to one of Bright Life’s packages for a year. Her house sits on the western outskirts of Arua in an area called Odia, very close to the DRC border, which she asserts is suitable for her poultry side business as she can sell her chickens and eggs in two different countries. Her main business is a unisex salon called Palz, where she and a partner co-own and provide hairdressing services.

“Although my house is 8 meters from a main road, I am still disconnected from the grid as no wire is extended. However, my salon is connected and that used to be the only place I can charge my phone before coming home.”

With Bright Life’s solar products, she can complement her fully charged phone on the way back from work should she need to. But, more importantly, she uses the energy she collects from the solar products to power warming lights for newly hatched chicks. She has two types of chicken: broilers, bred for meat, and layers, bred for producing eggs. She needs both lights to ensure that the broiler chicks survive rainy days and that the hatchery can work overnight.

Corrine currently has 70 chickens, and the number is increasing with time. She said that she has been able to augment her brood of chickens because of another benefit the solar products have provided her – the prevention of theft. She explained that the outdoor lighting powered by the products had repelled night thieves from taking her chickens.

Her subscription package with Bright Life includes a 10-watt system for which she pays 39500 Ugandan shillings monthly (on a 17-month contractual agreement), but she wishes to expand to the 70-watt system. The contract stipulates a financing system for her to own the system ultimately. Her hatchery needs more energy, and she still cooks her food with charcoal when the power runs out.

“To light up my house, I formerly used lamps and candles. The purchase of a packet of candles costs 1500 Ugandan Shillings. A single pack has six candles. I need 3 to 4 candles a night, mainly when my husband and I cook dinner or attend to our three children’s needs,” Corrine said.

Her three children, Elijah, Israel and Abigail are all fond of the new solar panel. Elijah likes it because it allows him to eat his favorite meat dish, while Israel noted that he likes it because of the time when there was enough power left for him to be able to watch his favorite South African movie, Mad Buddies. When 3-year-old Abigail, the youngest, was asked what she liked about the solar panel, she proclaimed: “So I can see!”

With this newfound energy supply, Corrine aims to expand, especially since she has academic aspirations for her children. She says the 70-watt package can aid her in reaching her goal of having 2000 chickens. She says buying a brood is more cost-effective than purchasing individual chickens according to how much heat and lighting she can supply for her poultry. She also has space for a piggery, which is another wish of hers to own one day.

Her hairdressing job is allowing her to fund her poultry business further. The bookings are usually made at night, and this is why she needs to keep her phone charged. With more wattage, she can expand both her businesses in Arua, which brands itself as the Mighty City of Opportunities.

“I heard of Bright Life through a friend and now I am recommending it to all working mothers I meet and even my clients at the hair salon,” concluded Corrine.

This is precisely why the United Nations Capital Fund (UNCDF) is supporting the Bright Life initiative, which has impacted the lives of more than 200,000 people. By supplying rural women with financing models that can improve their livelihoods through clean energy, a myriad of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are addressed in the last mile of the LDCs.

“UNCDF’s partnership with the Embassy of Sweden in Uganda has enabled solar companies such as Bright Life to expand its operations to hard-to-reach areas and provide affordable solar products to underserved communities,” said Julius Magala, the Energy Access Coordinator.

The Renewable Energy Challenge Fund has supported critical interventions with a US$ 90,000 grant to increase the distribution of these products through a more comprehensive network of agents. They helped recruit three new staff, including a Direct Sales Manager. Moreover, they supported the recruitment and training of 16 agents for the Arua Brand and 14 for the Nebbi branch. They also helped launch two new offices in Arua and Nebbi.

The Embassy of Sweden in Kampala has a broad mandate to promote Swedish-Ugandan relations through political dialogue, development cooperation, trade and investment, cultural exchange and through service to Swedish citizens. The Embassy is also accredited to the Central African Republic and Chad and provides assistance to Swedish citizens in the event of a consular crisis.

Working through the Embassy, Sweden has a long tradition of generous and ambitious development aid to Uganda, channeled through international organizations such as the UN and other partners. Within the framework of the current strategy, Sweden’s development cooperation with Uganda is contributing to greater respect for human rights and the rule of law, a stronger democracy and greater gender equality, environmentally and climate resilient sustainable development, and equitable and good health. In 2022, the Embassy celebrated 60 years of diplomatic friendship and fruitful people to people ties between Uganda and Sweden.

The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) is the United Nations’ flagship catalytic financing entity for the world’s 46 Least Developed Countries (LDCs). With its unique capital mandate and focus on the LDCs, UNCDF works to invest and catalyze capital to support these countries in achieving the sustainable growth and inclusiveness envisioned by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Doha Programme of Action for the least developed countries, 2022–2031.

UNCDF builds partnerships with other UN organizations, as well as private and public sector actors, to achieve greater impact in development; specifically, by unlocking additional resources and strengthening financing mechanisms and systems contributing to transformation pathways, focusing on such development themes as green economy, digitalization, urbanization, inclusive economies, gender equality and women’s economic empowerment.

A hybrid development finance institution and development agency, UNCDF uses a combination of capital instruments (deployment, financial & business advisory and catalyzation) and development instruments (technical assistance, capacity development, policy advice, advocacy, thought leadership, and market analysis and scoping) which are applied across five priority areas (inclusive digital economies, local transformative finance, women’s economic empowerment, climate, energy & biodiversity finance, and sustainable food systems finance).