• MCFA will provide €1 million to UpEnergy Zambia to deploy more than 40,000 efficient electric cookers by end-2029.
• Only 8.9% of Zambia’s population currently has access to clean cooking, while the government aims to reach 40%.
• MCFA recently signed another €2 million agreement with Ener-G-Africa Zambia to develop pellet-production units in Lusaka.

Africa’s transition to clean cooking continues to advance slowly because of limited financing. Zambia illustrates this challenge, as less than 10% of its population currently has access to clean cooking.

The Modern Cooking Facility for Africa (MCFA) signed a new agreement in Zambia with UpEnergy Zambia to expand electric cooking in the country. The financing, announced on 18 November, amounts to roughly €1 million. MCFA will use the funds to help UpEnergy distribute more than 40,000 efficient electric cookers by the end of 2029.

The initiative targets households already connected to the national grid in urban areas, where electricity access is widespread but where most families continue to cook with charcoal or firewood.

UpEnergy distributes cookers designed for African domestic use, offering cooking times up to twice as fast as biomass fuels. The cookers include integrated sensors that record up to 13 months of usage data. This technology allows the company to measure actual adoption rates and compare electricity consumption to traditional fuels.

Rygard Ntemena, UpEnergy Zambia’s country director, said: “We are grateful for the continued support of the MCFA and the confidence placed in our work, which allows us to take a new step in rolling out electric cooking in Zambia. This investment helps us strengthen our field operations, expand distribution networks, improve household support and make electric cooking a reliable part of daily life for families across the country.”

Zambia aims to increase clean cooking access to 40% of the population, up from the current 8.9%. MCFA is one of the main contributors to that goal. Earlier this month, the program signed another agreement with Ener-G-Africa Zambia to support the development of pellet-production units in Lusaka, backed by €2 million in financing.

This article was initially publsihed in French by Abdoullah Diop

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum