This archive report was first published on 17 November 2019.
On May 28, 2019, Koko Networks CEO Greg Murray, Energy PS Joseph Njoroge, and the firm's chief customer officer Leila Ibrahim launched bio-ethanol stoves at Nyama Mama restaurant in Nairobi.
Fast forward to November 2019, Koko Networks has started selling bio-ethanol cooking solutions to high and low-end food outlets via its partnership with M-Kula, a companies-supported employee-feeding platform used by 300 restaurants and roadside sheds.
Under the partnership, M-Kula will identify the first 60 food vendors to benefit from the Koko-backed credit programme, where ethanol cook stoves will be provided on credit. This initiative aims to improve access to fuel free of carbon dioxide-laden fumes and is accessible from dispensers located in retail stores across Nairobi.
Greg Murray, the CEO, emphasized the importance of this partnership, saying, "Our goal is to keep all Kenyans away from dirty cooking practices that drive indoor air pollution. By saving money on cooking fuel, restaurant owners will experience increased customer-flow, cleaner premises and have the ability to increase the variety of meals on their menus."
According to Neil Ribeiro, the platform developer and Apptivate Africa chief executive, this partnership is a win-win situation that reduces reliance on scarce wood fuel and charcoal, thereby increasing profit margins.
"We believe that using greener, safer, and more affordable cooking energy will result in cleaner meals, healthier and more productive employees, and more profitable businesses," he said.
Using the Koko cooker, vendors can save around Sh400 per day on cooking fuel, with the cooker retailing at Sh4,500. Merchants can decide how many cookers they would like to have, and a payment plan is created with instalments from as little as Sh200 per day.
