Solar Sister fights energy poverty across sub-Saharan Africa by recruiting, training, and supporting women entrepreneurs to create clean energy distribution businesses. It all started when Katherine Lucey, a former American investment banker, encountered Rebecca, a Ugandan farmer. Rebecca was using a solar lamp to illuminate her chicken coop, leading to increased egg production. As her sales grew, Rebecca built a profitable farm, elevated her family’s living conditions, and established a school for the community. If one woman could make such an impact with a solar panel, Lucey wondered what the scalable impact could be for a whole network of women.
Lucey met Neha Misra, an Indian energy economist who witnessed the ripple effect of female-led solar energy initiatives in India. Together, they laid the groundwork for a social enterprise that empowers local women to distribute clean energy solutions via affordable, small solar lamps, home systems, and clean cookstoves in remote communities. Solar Sister was founded in 2009. After initiating a pilot program in Uganda, it expanded into Tanzania and then Nigeria. In 2022, Solar Sister merged with Livelihoods Kenya and expanded into Kenya. By 2024, the organization reached over 10,000 entrepreneurs and more than 4.5 million people with clean energy, mitigating 1.5 million-plus tons of carbon dioxide. It has about 125 full-time employees.
“It’s not just about numbers; it’s a story of resilience and empowerment in regions scarred by conflict and challenges,” says Solar Sister communications manager Joanna B. Pinneo. “Solar Sister’s unique model has been implemented in war-torn areas and has supported women from all backgrounds, from people with disabilities to internally displaced persons and refugees.”
Solar Sister provides its entrepreneurs with a startup toolkit, 12 months of core training, and monthly mentoring meetings. Those who complete the advanced training curriculum are given access to a revolving zero-interest-rate credit mechanism where they can purchase solar products through a 30-day loan of up to $200. Advanced entrepreneurs receive additional marketing materials and IDs.
“We continuously support women to ensure that they can overcome seasonal challenges and feel connected to their Solar Sister family,” Pinneo shares. “The secret behind Solar Sister’s model is that our support is ongoing, and we offer continued chances for Solar Sister entrepreneurs to progress and grow.”
Through the sale of over 980,000 clean energy products, including 62,000-plus cookstoves, Solar Sister entrepreneurs have illuminated homes and significantly reduced indoor air pollution, which in turn reduces the risk of illness and premature death. Lack of energy is a daunting reality for what is approaching a billion people across the African continent who lack access to clean cooking fuels and technologies, according to the World Health Organization. Many are also still living in the dark, as over 40% of the population still lacks access to energy, the WHO reports. Access to energy has multi-dimensional impacts on education, health, community resilience, climate resilience and adaptability, income generation, and improved livelihoods.
Solar Sister identified its target customers as women making daily miles-long walks into town to fill up a soda bottle with kerosene and return home to pour it into their lamps. Spending up to 20 hours a week collecting fuel for energy use prevents women from participating in income-generating activities. Plus, young girls are often removed from school for firewood collection. With all that in mind, Solar Sister identified its target entrepreneurs as women.
“We have found that the decision to include women was brilliant and that the women are fantastic salespeople,” founder and CEO Lucey says. “I’d say they go beyond being just agents, entrepreneurs, or salespeople. They are evangelical about bringing clean energy to communities. They know themselves what it means to have light. They know themselves what it means to cook on a stove to reduce the amount of smoke inhalation in their homes.”
Because the women know it personally, they reach out to their families, friends, and neighbors and distribute these products with an authentic understanding of the benefits.
“So rather than coming in and saying, ‘We have this panel with this many specs and all that, they come in they talk about, my son is No. 1 in school this year, and the reason is that he’s able to study at night,’” Lucey shares. “The other women want that as well for their children.”
