Bringing stand-alone solar energy to African homes
1.2 billion people in the world have no access to electricity.
They satisfy basic energy needs through kerosene, which is expensive and harmful to health. With no energy, families are excluded from being connected to the modern, digital pulse of time. This is why the university spin-off startup mango solar is more than just a company selling solar lighting to people living at the base of the income pyramid. It’s a company with the vision to bring the benefits of digitalization to remote off-grid villages across Africa, and beyond.
mango solar develops long-lasting solar home systems so people can enjoy clean and safe energy, 80 times brighter lighting and save up to 590 € in 5 years. In addition, mango solar provides a robust and waterproof smartphone, enabling people access to the online world for the first time in their life. At the same time, this is the interface to our mango Cloud, providing services like remote support, education and financing. This is how we’re shifting digitalization to previously unreachable areas!
“4.4 billion people in the world have no access to the internet and remain excluded from being connected to the modern, digital pulse of time. They use low-price, outdated feature phones limited to basic communication functionalities impairing equality of opportunities on a global level.” mango solar
mango solar products are tailored to fit into existing mini grid ecosystems through individual branding, IoT-connectivity and robustness by design. The company’s mission is to break existing frontiers and enable full electrification of communities.mango solar products are engineered in Germany, but produced locally in Kenya::
- made to last: Robust by design. Resistant to water & dust. 10 years expected lifetime.
- sustainable: Responsible sourcing. Local production. Repair- & recyclable. Circular economy.
- affordable: Pay-As-You-Go financing. Flexible instalments. Mobile money.
Who is behind mango solar?
mango solar is founded by three students from the University of Applied Science in Neu-Ulm, Germany (HNU). Following 2 years of prototyping and business model development, mango solar has been founded in 2020 and seeks to take-off in earl 2021.
mango solar is the winner of the Gexsi Impact Challenge#2, which we executed in partnership with SensAbility – WHU Business School. As the live Gexsi Social Pitch event at the SensAbility Impact Summit could not take place, we run a digital challenge during July 2020.
Learn more about the social startup mango solar:
How mango solar contributes to the 17 Global Goals
Affordable and clean energy
Access to clean energy for all through affordable pay-as-you-go solar lighting and energy systems.
Good health and well-being
Replacement of harmful kerosene lamps with powerful solar lighting
Responsible consumption and production
Robust, durable products for base-of-the-pyramid markets, sustainable sourcing.
Reduced inequalities
Mango Solar specifically addresses people at the lower end of the income pyramid, who previously could only obtain energy at much higher prices.
Climate action
Ambition to save more than 400,000 tons of CO2 until 2024 by replacing kerosene with our mango solar products
Project Assessment
You can access the full project assessment here:
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