By AmforGod Olisa
The future of African entrepreneurship is increasingly being shaped by the intersection of enterprise, technology and sustainable energy.
Nineteen companies across Nigeria, Kenya and Ethiopia have received a combined US$1.5 million in grants under the Productive Use Financing Facility (PUFF), an initiative managed by CLASP, to expand access to solar-powered equipment for small businesses and entrepreneurs.
The funding was announced during the Adaptation Investment Summit 2026 in Nairobi, Kenya. The programme is expected to support the deployment of approximately 3,800 productive-use energy appliances and contribute to the creation of more than 3,000 green jobs across the three participating countries. Eight Nigerian companies are among the beneficiaries.
Beyond Electricity: Powering Productive Enterprise
For many African entrepreneurs, particularly those operating in agriculture, food processing, retail, manufacturing and other energy-dependent sectors, access to reliable electricity remains central to business productivity.
The significance of the PUFF initiative is therefore not simply that businesses are receiving grants. Its greater importance lies in connecting clean energy with income-generating economic activity.
The programme is expected to expand the use of equipment such as solar-powered water pumps, refrigerators and milling machines. These are productive assets capable of helping businesses preserve goods, process agricultural products, improve production capacity and operate in communities where conventional electricity supply may be unreliable or unavailable.
This represents an important direction for entrepreneurship development in Africa: energy solutions must not only provide electricity; they must also enable production, enterprise growth and job creation.
A Major Opportunity for Nigerian Entrepreneurs
Nigeria’s inclusion in the initiative, with eight beneficiary companies, highlights the growing opportunities available in the green economy.
Entrepreneurs should begin to look beyond traditional business sectors and explore opportunities in renewable energy distribution, solar equipment installation and maintenance, clean-energy financing, agricultural technology, cold-chain solutions, recycling, sustainable manufacturing and climate-smart enterprise development.
The transition towards a greener economy will require more than engineers and large energy companies. It will also create opportunities for technicians, installers, distributors, maintenance specialists, fabricators, sales professionals and young apprentices.
This is where entrepreneurship and apprenticeship development must work together.
The IEAMA Perspective: Skills Must Follow the Market
For the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Apprenticeship Management and Administration (IEAMA), the development offers an important lesson: entrepreneurship training must continue to evolve with emerging economic realities.
Africa cannot prepare entrepreneurs for tomorrow’s economy using only yesterday’s business models.
Entrepreneurship and apprenticeship programmes must increasingly expose learners to green business opportunities, renewable-energy value chains, sustainable production, digital business management, financial literacy and emerging technologies.
The apprenticeship sector also has an important role to play. As solar technologies and other clean-energy systems become more widely adopted, the demand for skilled installation, maintenance, repair and distribution services is likely to create new enterprise opportunities.
Young people who acquire technical skills must also be equipped with entrepreneurship knowledge that enables them to transform those skills into sustainable businesses.
From Grant Dependence to Enterprise Readiness
While grants and development funding can accelerate business growth, African entrepreneurs must also build businesses that are investment-ready and commercially sustainable.
The PUFF initiative demonstrates that funding increasingly follows businesses that can solve real economic problems. Entrepreneurs seeking similar opportunities must develop proper business structures, maintain financial records, demonstrate market demand, understand their customers and clearly communicate the measurable impact of their businesses.
Between 2022 and 2024, an earlier phase of PUFF reportedly disbursed US$2.7 million and supported the sale of nearly 16,000 income-generating appliances, directly benefiting more than 53,000 people across Africa.
This suggests that productive-use energy financing can produce wider economic benefits when clean-energy technology is connected directly to entrepreneurship and income generation.
Building Africa’s Next Generation of Green Entrepreneurs
Africa’s energy challenges should not be viewed only as infrastructure problems. They also represent an opportunity for innovation, enterprise development and skilled job creation.
The continent needs entrepreneurs who can identify local problems and build commercially sustainable solutions around them. It also needs apprenticeship systems that can prepare skilled people for emerging industries.
The US$1.5 million grant to 19 African companies is therefore more than a funding announcement. It is another indication that green entrepreneurship is becoming an important part of Africa’s economic future.
For Nigeria, the challenge is to ensure that more entrepreneurs, apprentices and MSMEs are prepared to participate in this transition.
The future of entrepreneurship will belong not only to those who start businesses, but to those who build enterprises capable of solving real problems, adopting innovation and creating sustainable value.
IEAMA Editorial Position: Entrepreneurship development in Africa must move beyond business creation alone. The next phase must integrate enterprise skills, apprenticeship development, technology, access to finance and sustainability. Green entrepreneurship provides Nigeria with an opportunity to create jobs, strengthen MSMEs and develop a new generation of skilled entrepreneurs capable of competing in a changing global economy.