Africa Energy Portal
The ambitious project to increase access to clean cooking in Uganda, the Uganda Biogas and Electric Cooking Project (UBEP), has received $8.79 million in funding from the African Development Bank Group.
For cooking, 89% of Ugandans currently use non-sustainable biomass, like fuelwood and charcoal. A projected annual shortage of more than 100 million tons of wood biomass is a result of this pervasive reliance, which is also speeding up deforestation and increasing indoor air pollution.
The goal of UBEP is to tackle this issue in a number of ways. Electric cooking equipment for urban families and biogas plants for public institutions will be the project’s main investments. Campaigns to raise awareness also aim to promote behavioral changes, and technical training for individual technicians and SMEs will enhance operational sustainability.
Josephine Ngure, the Bank’s Uganda Country Manager, stated that the Uganda Biogas and Electric Cooking Project is a significant step in lowering the projected half a million premature deaths of women and children in Africa each year as a result of pollution from open fires.
There are four components, UBEP is one of the Bank’s largest public-sector clean cooking initiatives to date. Key features include:
- Biogas for public institutions: Construction of 47 biogas plants for schools, markets, and farming communities, aiming to cut charcoal and fuelwood use in these facilities by up to 50 percent.
- Electric cooking adoption: Provision of approximately 77,000 affordable electric cooking (eCooking) devices in major urban centers to spur large-scale uptake.
- Support market development: Establishment of standards, repair and maintenance services, and distribution systems for eCooking appliances.
- Technical assistance and training: Capacity building to support implementation and scale-up.
” Ngure continues , “By promoting electric cooking methods, the Bank is supporting Uganda’s goal of achieving an 18 percent national eCooking adoption rate by 2030,”.
The Uganda Biogas and Electric Cooking Project (UBEP) supports national and international climate and development goals, with major funding from the African Development Fund and other partners. Aimed at reducing reliance on biomass, the project will improve indoor air quality, conserve forests, and enhance agricultural productivity. It also promotes gender equity by lessening the burden on women to collect firewood. Overall, UBEP contributes to cleaner energy, healthier communities, and environmental sustainability in Uganda.
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