Fundraising Tracker

Reviewed the deck in May 2025. 

While the team liked the community angle, the key concerns were

1. The scalability of the model and
2. Traction (it's still early)

Requested to be added to investor newsletter

Co-organises the Global Off-Grid Solar Forum & Expo with GOGLA (see GOGLA row).

Echoing Green Fellowship

Submitted on October 7th 2025. Not selected for the 2026 Fellowship.

2026 Fellows were announced Sept 1, 2026.

EPPEEP Africa (Nordic Development Fund)

Closed for 2025, planning to apply for 2026. Not sure when it opens again

Oct 28th 2026: the 2026 call (grants up to €500k, Uganda eligible, applicant registered 6+ months, co-financing required) closed on March 16th 2026 and we missed it. Watch eepafrica.org for the 2027 call, likely early in the year.

Solarise Africa won a €1M EEP Africa grant for Zambia/Uganda on a similar "reliable power where the grid fails" case (USEA briefing, Oct 20th 2026).

Africa Climate Change Fund

African Green Banks (AFBD)

Alliance for Green Infrastructure (AFDB)

Beyond the Grid

No open applications yet 

https://beyondthegrid.africa/funding-rounds/

US Department of Energy

Nithio

Mission 300 (World bank)

Factor E

Kiva.org

Applied on June 18th. 

We did not qualify because we are not (yet) based in North America

Submitted application on July 7th. 

Not Accepted

Submitted on September 15th 2025 with EnAccess and The Gym Rwanda

Submitted on September 20th 2025. 

Waiting on Budget from NFE to confirm how much they can contribute

Waiting on Budget from NFE to confirm how much they can contribute

Applied to the Tech Accelerator on June 17th 2026 (application 00298). Also started a Partnership application (00076) on June 12th.

Followed up with contact@afddigitalenergychallenge.com on Aug 25th; no reply yet.

Still no reply in NFE mail as of Oct 28th 2026. Chase again.

Asked for €150k (€112.5k grant + €37.5k expert support).

Submitted on October 28th 2025. Not selected.

The 2026 competition is open again (reminder email Oct 12, 2026), so consider reapplying.

Email sent on Oct 16th 2025 to find out when applications will be open again

They are offering a research program that could help us develop V1 of our autonomous microgrid

Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA)

No links to getting involved

Energy IoT Open Source

EIoT can service as a fiscal sponsor to receive tax deductible US donations on our behalf. 

Funding Hope

Develop Ventures

Uganda not eligible right now

Carbon Credits

Initial meeting with Ashaba told us that this is going to be a long lead time option to explore.. at least 7 years before any credits are verified and bankable

DRK Foundation

Focusses on post pilot, pre-scale. I think we are not yet post pilot

IEEE Smart Village (ISV)

Intro email sent on Oct 20th 2026 to Abdullateef Aliyu (abdullateef@ieee.org), Africa Regional Working Group, cc smartvillagestaff@ieee.org. Asked whether grid-connected urban microgrids are in scope and requested a call.

Waiting for reply; follow up early November if no response.

First round is usually up to $25k, with follow-on funding up to $200k after results.

Intake needs a 2-page concept note, lean canvas and 5-year cash flow forecast; the regional group mentors the proposal, then the Project Development Committee reviews it quarterly (6–8 weeks), then a contract is signed (2–4 weeks).

Most spend should go to income-generating assets, and the project must cover electricity, education and enterprise. Paid in tranches against progress reports.

Met ISV at PowerAfrica Nairobi, Sept 2026.

GOGLA: Global Off-Grid Solar Forum & Expo (Kigali, Oct 27–29th 2026)

Dansturn is in Kigali for OSEAS (Oct 26–27th). A free-pass request to Laura Bonilla (l.bonilla@gogla.org, Events), cc Megan Taylor (m.taylor@gogla.org), was drafted on Oct 21st but there's no sign it was sent as of Oct 28th.

Full pass is $1,650 and the expo-only pass is $50; no budget for either. The local-company investor roundtable is on Oct 29th.

Even if we can't attend: sign up for the GOGLA Virtual Pitchbook (seen by investors before and after the forum), and get the 2026 Off-Grid Solar Market Trends Report launched there.

GOGLA members get event discounts.

USEA Solar Innovation Challenge & Business Pitch

Applied on Aug 15th 2026 to pitch the RPM at the USEA National Solar Expo (Aug 26–28th). USEA acknowledged on Aug 20th, but we got no decision despite follow-ups on Aug 20th and 25th.

Next Expo is Aug 25–27th 2027; ask to be on the pitch list early.

Check whether NFE is a USEA member; every weekly briefing pushes membership.

GET.invest Finance Readiness Support

Not applied. Runs year-round in rounds; the last round closed on Oct 20th 2026, and feedback comes 6–8 weeks after each round closes.

Free support for early-stage, locally owned companies: financial model, pitch deck, investor introductions. Apply at apply.get-invest.eu.

EU Delegation to Uganda (Uganda–EU Business Forum)

The forum ran Oct 20–21st 2026 and we missed the pitch session, which needed a minimum raise of €0.5M. Ministers used it to court EU energy investors.

Send an intro to Cristina Banuta (Cristina.BANUTA@eeas.europa.eu) framing Garuga plus scale-up as €0.5M+, and ask about EU programmes for Ugandan energy SMEs.

Transforming Energy Access (UK Ayrton Fund)

No open call found (Oct 2026). The UK extended the Ayrton Fund. Its Beyond-Zero project (locally repairable, expandable storage replacing generators) is led by Acele Africa.

Watch for calls; explore partnering with Acele Africa.

ASCENT Project Preparation Facility (World Bank / COMESA)

Not eligible yet: needs 3+ years of operations, $150k+ minigrid revenue, an active financing deal and 20% co-financing. The first cycle closed on Aug 31st 2026.

Grants of $50k–200k. Revisit in 2027–28.

UECCC Solar Loan Program

Not explored. Household and business solar credit through participating banks.

Possible way to finance Garuga household connections later.