The MCA-Malawi developed and submitted a Concept Note for a rural electrification project.  The team suggested that such a project be developed in order to provide access to power for rural communities, using the public-private partnership (PPP) framework.   The project  will focus on ensuring that the power will be used for productive economic activities in addition to providing power at the household level.  Studies have indicated that rural electrification significantly impacts the poor by raising household incomes by almost 50%.

Project preparation activities are on-going and are focused on:   a ) developing a mini-grid in a rural community;  b) output-based aid approaches for targeting the poor;  c) addressing legal/regulatory framework issues;  d) financial/economic modelling;  and , e) implementation arrangements.

The MCA-Malawi Core Team together with officials from the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development, the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and the Environment, ESCOM, Ministry of Local Government, have identified and toured numerous sites that could lend themselves to such a project.  The focus now is to ensure that the demand for power determines the suitability of a particular site.  Other factors that will be considered in identifying and determining potential sites include:
a) Number of households
b) Cash crop production
c) Other economic activities, including potential businesses that would arise due to the availability of power
d) Possible productive uses of the power, including cold storage, milling, etc
e) Distance to nearest markets
f) Monthly household expenditure on electricity substitutes