The African Biodigester Component (ABC) Sahel project aims to support the growth and sustainability of a commercial biodigester sector in sub-Saharan Africa.

Its intervention will result in installing at least 22,000 small-scale biodigesters (household level) in four years in Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali, providing access to energy to at least 110,000 people in the framework of the Dutch targets relating to SDG7. ABC applies a market-based approach, developing and strengthening demand, supply and the enabling environment. In Burkina Faso, the goal is to achieve a mature sector that continues to evolve and provide access to energy and organic fertiliser without continued support from external donors. In Mali and Niger, the programme will develop the foundations of the market. In Mali, the construction of 6,229 biodigesters is planned by the end of 2025

RBF Concept

ABC offers Results Based Financing (RBF) to mitigate financial risks and provide financial support. The RBF aims to help companies build/install biodigesters to develop their activities and improve access to (private) financing. It is accessible for any biodigester built/installed in all regions of the country.

Process and deadline

The request for access to the RBF mechanism is open to all private entities. Public (governmental) institutes and NGOs are excluded. Requests for RBF support are received until October 31, 2024. These requests must be accompanied by all information required to meet the mandatory and desired eligibility criteria listed below. In the event of a positive result, an RBF grant agreement will be signed between the company and SNV. If the result is negative, the company will be informed and receive feedback on the deficiencies. It will be free to reapply for RBF support when these deficiencies have been corrected.

Eligibility criteria

Interested companies must meet several criteria, which are called eligibility criteria. They include criteria for applicant companies as well as for the biodigester and related services. These criteria are divided into mandatory and desired eligibility criteria. The company cannot participate in the RBF facility if the required criteria are not met. Suppose the desired eligibility criteria are not met. In that case, the company will be allowed to participate in the facility but must comply with these criteria within six months (“grace period”). In this case, the applicant must submit a “Compliance Action Plan”, which outlines how and when the company plans to meet all of the stipulated eligibility criteria.

Evaluation and classification of companies

Once the RBF grant agreement is signed, the company will become eligible to receive RBF incentives after a verified installation. This verification is carried out by the Independent Verification Agent (IVA) recruited by RVO via a mobile application. Then, regular performance evaluations (biannual) will be carried out by ANADEB in Mali with the technical support of SNV. These assessments will be based on the following:

• gender equality,

• business management

• service management

• management of the installation, and will give rise to a classification by category: (Green “A”, Orange “B” and Red “C”)

More information

For more information, please see the RBF guide, which you will find in the application form here.