This archive report was first published on 6 July 2020.
Published on July 6, 2020, a report by the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) revealed that Kenya has surpassed India as the top market for solar systems.
The report attributed the rise in demand for solar products among Kenyans to a project funded by the World Bank that provided off-grid solar systems to regions without access to grid electricity.
Kenya's sales in solar power units grew by 55% in 2019, with 1.97 million units sold, compared to 1.2 million units in 2018. In contrast, India's sales dropped by 31% to 1.6 million units in 2019, from 2 million units in 2018.
According to the report, the top five markets for affiliated off-grid solar systems in 2019 were Kenya, India, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Nigeria.
The growth in Kenya's solar market is attributed to rising customer demand for solar home systems and a conducive sales environment, resulting from an adequate regulatory framework and the World Bank-funded Kenya Off-Grid Solar Access Project (KOSAP).
Despite the government's efforts to increase the number of households connected to grid power, the demand for solar systems remains high in Kenya. The country's electricity access has increased from 29% in 2013 to 73% in 2018, with customer numbers growing from 2.2 million to 6.7 million during the same period.
However, the increased customer numbers have created challenges for Kenya Power, including non-payment of power bills by some customers.
The solar industry has created employment opportunities in Kenya, with 10,000 people directly employed in the industry as of last year, comparable to the 10,993 people employed by Kenya Power in June 2018.
