Sustainable Appliances Marketplace for Africa & Asia (SAMPA)

Establish a centralised procurement and quality-assurance platform for affordable, energy-efficient appliances

As part of the 11 year, £110m research programme called Modern Energy Cooking Services funded by UK Aid, Loughborough University (Grant holders) and other funders are cooperating on establishing the above ‘SAMPA’. SAMPA will be a created operation (new or an extension of existing services) set up with the aim of aggregating demand for appliances, aggregating order sizes for improved pricing, organising tenders with local and global suppliers and coordinating the international logistics of the supply. It will be structured to pass along cost savings to in country distributors, households and businesses after ensuring the platform is sustainable. The funders seek an operating collaborator or consortium of collaborators to launch and manage SAMPA.

SAMPA will focus on orders for cooking appliances, but the resulting platform may include other appliances.

Energy efficient electric cooking appliances are being cited in National ‘clean cooking’ and electricity access strategies and in integrated energy planning as viable and affordable, with huge health benefits and with monthly savings to the user when compared to other solutions currently being used. However, the upfront cost of such devices remains a challenge for many.

Currently, most country distributors do not order enough appliances to be able to maximise bulk purchase savings. By aggregating country level distributor orders SAMPA will also work with manufacturers to negotiate bulk discounts and work with manufacturers long term to reflect local needs and preferences, further stimulating demand for appliances. SAMPA will also undertake quality control and obtain prequalified quality products. It may also be able to better negotiate and channel working capital facilities. Microcredit, PAYGO, Results Based Financing and/or Carbon financing organised by in-country distributors can allow users to purchase appliances over time but creates working capital challenges. The SAMPA platform will ensure that suppliers are paid in a timely manner.

As an example of the potential markets, a Development Finance Institution recently announced projects in four African countries where they are seeking to support eCooking each at approximately $4m per project. This platform will be relevant to Mission 300.

By aggregating demand, SAMPA will be able to develop a growing relationship with suppliers ensuring a smooth supply of quality products.

A sum has been allocated for the startup and preparation and depending on the need, the project team will work with the platform to secure the required working capital.

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