Powering the future: How community-led efforts are closing the energy divide

Organisations like the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) exist to address this, not as charity, but as an expression of a core belief: advancing technology must mean advancing its benefits for all of humanity. The IEEE Power and Energy Society (PES) embodies that belief by funding initiatives that bring sustainable energy to underserved communities worldwide, with a specific focus across Africa, to help solve problems for the greater good. A Model Built on Enterprise, Not Aid One of those initiatives is IEEE Smart Village (ISV), a volunteer-led seed fund and remote business incubator that turns local entrepreneurs into the owners and operators of their own energy enterprises. Our answer to energy poverty is enterprise: local ownership, community leadership, and the patient partnership that converts a seed investment into a self-sustaining business that can grow to empower millions of lives. ISV's approach is deliberately different from traditional humanitarian models. Working closely with the founders, we support, validate, refine, and help scale their ventures. Our commitment does not end at launch. We remain long-term partners through implementation, operations, and growth. Entrepreneurship can be a solitary journey, and our goal is to ensure no entrepreneur walks alone. 500kW mini-grid operated by DCN in Ogun state, Nigeria That model recently produced the largest transaction in ISV's history. Two Nigerian entrepreneurs whom ISV has supported for more than a decade - Ifeanyi Orajaka, CEO of Green Village Electricity (GVE) and Henry Ureh, CEO of Darway Coast Nigeria (DCN) - have each been awarded contracts to develop 109 solar mini-grids across Nigeria, that will bring reliable electricity to more than 230,000 homes and businesses. Their combined fleet now exceeds 12 megawatts of solar photovoltaic capacity. With these awards, they will nearly double the number of people served by ISV entrepreneurs worldwide, reaching over 4 million individuals. The projects carry a combined price tag of $119 million, with $37 million already committed by the International Finance Corporation and the Norwegian Investment Fund. But Nigeria is only part of the story. Across the Continent: From Mini-Grids to Market Access ISV operates across 15 nations in Africa, with over 50 active, completed and planned projects seeding nearly 60 founders who build, own, and operate their own electricity companies or enterprises based on the productive use of electricity. The economic gains stay in the community because the enterprise is of the community - and providing energy is only the start of the story for founders and communities. In Rwanda, Monica LaBiche Brown, CEO of Africa Development Promise (ADP), works with rural cooperatives to turn solar power into higher incomes and stronger market access, with funding from IEEE PES channeled through ISV. In Bugesera District, ADP partnered with Koperative Abakoranamurava ba Mayange, "The Hardworking People of Mayange", to build a solar-powered farm packhouse and walk-in cold storage facility. Before the facility existed, members were forced to sell their harvest immediately, before it spoiled, often at whatever price a buyer offered. The cold storage changed that, allowing the cooperative to extend the lifespan of its harvest and sell it at competitive prices. Completed in December 2025, the facility and office space runs on rooftop solar with energy-efficient cooling, and houses cold rooms, grading and handling areas. To ensure long-term viability, members are trained in operations, maintenance, food safety, and market systems: practical skills that make the infrastructure effective rather than ornamental. Beyond the cooperative's own members, the facility is expected to serve 50 neighboring farmers, reaching roughly 600 total people. In Mayange, power has connected its community directly to prosperity. What It Takes to Go Further To reach the nearly 800 million people worldwide who remain without reliable energy, three things must happen. First, other professionals must step forward. The Nigerian mini-grid and Rwanda cold storage facility were built by local entrepreneurs, funded by institutions, and sustained by long-term partners. IEEE PES members bring exactly the expertise ISV entrepreneurs need, but other professionals with skills in areas like power systems knowledge, project and program management experience, and professional networks that open doors are still needed. The energy transition will not reach those who need it most without the volunteers, mentors, and advocates who understand it best. Second, communities must lead, not merely participate. ISV projects work because we respect the culture, knowledge, and agency of the people we serve, because local residents know their communities best, and they know the obstacles that must be overcome to achieve lasting change. The entrepreneurs who succeed with us are not executing our plans. They are executing their own plans, with our support. That distinction is everything. Third, we must invest in STEM education and local technical capacity, because infrastructure without the skills to run it is a liability, not an asset. In Rwanda, for example, pairing solar investment with hands-on technical training in operations, maintenance, and financial management is what converts hardware into lasting livelihoods. More broadly, scaling renewable energy across Africa requires local engineers, technicians, and entrepreneurs who can build, maintain, and innovate on these systems. Developing that generation is not a long-term aspiration. It is an immediate priority. A Commitment That Compounds More than a decade after ISV's first investments in Ifeanyi's and Henry's companies, we are still by their sides, now helping structure large-scale financing for infrastructure of lasting consequence. A well-placed early commitment to people and ideas compounds in ways no one can fully predict at the outset. We knew only that these entrepreneurs had vision, capability, and determination. That was enough. The energy divide will not close through goodwill alone. It will close through sustained commitment, genuine partnership, and the belief that local entrepreneurs are the most powerful force for lasting change in their own communities. IEEE Smart Village exists to prove that. With the support of the broader engineering community, donors, and global development institutions, we will. The work is far from finished, but the path is clear, and the results speak for themselves.

Powering the future: How community-led efforts are closing the energy divide

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