'Manik, a solar pump operator for Nusra' by World Bank Photo Collection via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) https://flic.kr/p/N1ZtUY

Clean Energy
for Development

The Clean Energy for Development research initiative supports 12 research projects that operate in 27 countries across three thematic bases: clean energy transition, micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and women and youth.

Explore the projects

Featured Blog

Putting care at the centre of clean energy transitions

14 October 2026

Clean energy transitions are often discussed in terms of technology, finance and climate targets. But what changes when we put care at the centre? Across many low- and middle-income countries, women and girls carry a disproportionate share of unpaid care and domestic work. Cooking, collecting fuel and water, caring for others, processing food, and sustaining […]

Smallholder farmer testing INFoCAT renewable energy powered groundnut pod plucker in Gomoa (Central Region, Ghana). Photo by UNU INRA.

Event

Webinar: Clean Energy Transitions: A care economy lens

Wednesday 16 September 2026

Clean energy transitions: what changes when we put care at the centre? Join us for an engaging webinar exploring how clean energy transitions can do more than expand access to power: they can also reduce drudgery, shift how unpaid care work is recognised and shared, and open up new opportunities for women and young people in […]

Solar panels, Bolivia

Learning

Inclusive and Clean Energy for SMEs in Rural Bolivia

7 October 2026

Bolivia has achieved high rates of electricity access, yet rural and semi-rural producers still face major barriers to securing reliable, affordable energy for productive use. Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the agrifood sector play a central role in ensuring national food security and creating employment. However, they remain highly dependent on fossil-fuel-powered pumps with […]

Project News

New research progress briefs explore how renewable energy MSMEs can support sustainable agriculture

8 July 2026

Four new Research Progress Briefs have been published as part of the Clean Energy for Development research programme, sharing emerging insights from country projects in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Uganda and Vietnam. The briefs are part of the three-year initiative “Leveraging renewable energy MSMEs for sustainable agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia”, led by the […]

Clean Energy for Development