Nairobi-headquartered M-KOPA has been named among the top 100 global green companies by the Cleantech Group.
The 2019 Global Cleantech 100 recognized M-KOPA for pioneering and building one of the world’s most advanced pay-as-you-go platforms – unlocking solar, information, technology and finance to upgrade millions of lives across Africa.
The Global Cleantech 100 is an annual guide to the leading companies and themes in sustainable innovation. It features the private, independent, for-profit companies best positioned to solve the world’s clean technology challenges. This year marks the 10th edition of the list, which first featured M-KOPA in 2014.
M-KOPA now sits at the heart of over 700,000 homes and businesses in Africa. It connects lights, phone charging, radios, TVs and fridges for over 3.5 million people. Over the lifetime of these devices over 1.5 million metric tonnes of CO2 will be displaced.
Jesse Moore, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder at M-KOPA, said “We’re delighted to be named among the global Cleantech 100 companies in 2019. Our clean technology is connecting homes and businesses in Africa, so millions of people can bypass expensive and unreliable services. As well as the environmental gains of moving to clean power, our customers can upgrade their lives and economic prospects by accessing finance for a range of productive appliances.”
M-KOPA subscribers save an average of KES 18,000 a year with their systems, compared to using kerosene, batteries and candles. This financial cushion means people can access more assets and services. 23% of M-KOPA subscribers use their system for productive activities – and they generate an average of KES 6,500 in additional monthly household income.
The list combines Cleantech Group’s research data with qualitative judgements from nominations and insight from a global 87-member expert panel comprised of leading investors and experts from corporations and industrials active in technology and innovation scouting.
“Our tenth edition is dominated by innovations for the future of food and mobility, and a decentralized and digitized future not only for energy, but for the industrial world more generally,” said Richard Youngman, CEO, Cleantech Group. “This is a far cry from the dominance of hardware, solar and biofuels in the inaugural Global Cleantech 100 in 2009.”
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