The Off-Grid Solar Policy Toolkit | Supporting Inter-Ministerial Collaboration to Advance Energy Access, Digital Transformation, and Financial Inclusion

This Off-Grid Solar (OGS) policy toolkit is designed to assist governments in creating an enabling environment for OGS and pay-as-you-go (PAYG) sector growth by establishing policy reforms determined through a structured process of inter-ministerial policy dialogue. It identifies twelve key policy issues and considers the advantages and disadvantages of different policy approaches to each issue. The toolkit then outlines a step-by-step process that governments can use to facilitate policy dialogue, providing guidance and tools at each step. This process envisions a scenario where government ministries and agencies work together to advance policy reforms that accelerate progress in energy access, digital inclusion, and financial inclusion. This document’s tools, methods, and ideas were field-tested through inter-ministerial policy dialogues in Ethiopia and Uganda. The two countries were selected for their contrasting policy environments for off-grid solar. The toolkit was instrumental in guiding inter-ministerial dialogue led by the ministry responsible for energy in both countries and supported by the firm that coordinated the toolkit’s development. In 2023, the two countries officially launched policy roadmaps created and validated by participating stakeholders.