Overview
Since 2013, EnDev is active in promoting a market for solar lamps in Liberia. Collaborating with the government agency RREA, EnDev works towards empowering retailers (who have capital to buy substantial quantity of lamps) and sales agents (who have almost no capital and get lamps from retailer), improve marketing and sales strategies and generate as well share knowledge, skills and expertise to enhance solar lamp retailing and repairing.
During the Ebola crisis, EnDev helped distributing solar lamps donated as humanitarian assistance, while market developing activities were interrupted.
Today, based on a market approach, RREA gives out the imported solar lamps to retailers who invest at least 1000 USD in buying solar lamps, EnDev complements this focusing to empower business people with not enough capital to become a retailer to sell solar lamps and generate income as sales agents.
EnDev’s three strategic objectives:
- Empowering more people to successfully sell solar lamps
- Improving marketing and sales strategies to increase access to solar lamps
- Increasing knowledge, skills and synergies to improve solar lamp sales and repairs
Strategies for market development:
1) NGOs empower sales agents and find best practices
EnDev invites NGOs to suggest target groups and sales strategies for their area(s) of operation to empower persons to become solar lamp sales agents. Those who apply with a convincing strategy receive (See call for proposals under Download and Information) the starting capital of up to 100 solar lamps (maximum of 10 lamps per suggested sales agent) as a donation.
NGOs are expected to monitor and support the sales agents, report on their marketing and sales strategies as well as sales numbers. Also, they will connect with an RREA retailer of their choice (or become RREA retailer themselves) to ensure continuous supply and repairs.
EnDev will compile the lessons learned of all NGOs, retailers and sales agents to summarize and share successful strategies.
2) Strengthen retailers and sales agents in marketing
EnDev in collaboration with solar lamp retailers and NGOs develops up to three marketing strategies , e.g. Flyers with all contact information, a radio show featuring solar lamps, a cost efficient way of using solar energy to show movies and publicity in rural communities. Such movies with publicity have been very successful in other countries and might be appreciated in Liberia, too.
Solar lamp retailers, sales agents and NGOs shall contribute to the implementation and testing of these marketing strategies.
EnDev will ensure proper documentation and evaluation of the strategies and share lessons learned.
EnDev Liberia offers workshops for maintenance and repair of solar lamps to retailers. During the training, retailers find out how solar lamps work, learn how to repair them, what spare parts to keep in stock and how their customers best operate the lamps to extend the products’ lifespan.
EnDev focuses on gathering, generating, sharing and distributing information and knowledge, connecting product or service providers with customers, enhancing quality and facilitating market development.