 Of money, mobiles and off-grid solar: new frontiers of electricity capital in sub-Saharan AfricaLucy H. Baker Chapter 14 in Handbook on Financialisation and Space, 2026, pp 235-253 from Edward Elgar Publishing Abstract: New forms of electricity provision, particularly in rural areas in sub-Saharan Africa, are being enabled by rapid technological developments in off-grid solar photovoltaic (PV) systems. These systems, which include solar lights, micro grids and solar home systems, have co-evolved with innovations in mobile money, fintech platforms and the expansion of wireless communication networks and have been defined as a new site of ‘electricity capital’ (Baker, 2022). As I explore, while the original stated aim of these systems was to provide energy access for the poorest households, the associated modes of public and private capital have not supported their potential to do so. Dominant players in the off-grid solar PV sector are now moving into larger-scale systems and accompanying household and financial products directed at higher value consumers. Meanwhile, since its beginnings in the late 2000s the sector has become increasingly consolidated, from a proliferation of startup companies to a small number of ‘next generation’ utilities and/or fintech platforms. Keywords: Electricity Capital; Off-grid Solar; Mobile Money; Sub-Saharan Africa; Finance (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:23133_14 Ordering information: This item can be ordered from Access Statistics for this chapter More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing |
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