Kenya’s Solar Panda Secures $8 Million in Series A Funding
The startup will use this investment to grow its product offerings, and expand its footprint within Kenya and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Solar Panda, a Kenyan and Canadian company that designs, manufacturers, and sells pay-as-you-go (PAYGo) solar home systems, has raised $8 million in Series A funding. The funding round was jointly led by impact investors Electrification Financial Initiative (EDFI ElectriFI) and Oikocredit.
The startup will use this investment to grow its product offerings, and expand its footprint within Kenya and Sub-Saharan Africa.
African startups have slowly been attracting interest from venture capitalists. In 2021, the continent’s startups received a record of $5.2 billion in investments, more than the preceding seven years combined, according to a 2022 Venture Capital in Africa Report.
Some leading renewable tech startups in Africa include Nigeria’s Kaltani, a clean-tech plastic waste recycling company, which raised $4 million in seed funding this year, and Kenya-based Sanergy, a waste management company that raised $2.5 million in funding last year.
“We are excited to partner with leading global impact investors Oikocredit and Electrifi and thankful that this funding will help us accelerate our mission of improving lives,” Andy Keith, founder and CEO of Solar Panda, tells StartupScene. “I’m very proud of the growth and success our team has achieved over the past four years, and with nearly 1 billion people in the world without access to electricity, we feel we are just getting started.”
The startup sells Solar Home Systems that include lights, mobile charging, radios and televisions through its extensive network of 37 shops and 1000 sales agents. Keeping affordability in mind, the systems provide financing options for customers to encourage usability and sustainability. The systems displace toxic kerosene lanterns, giving children light to study by, and providing access to information and entertainment.
Founded in 2017, Solar Panda has quickly grown during the last five years to become a local leader in the industry. Today, it provides systems to over 150,000 homes and around one million
