Africa

At a time when the transition commonly referred to as the fourth industrial revolution is gaining pace, it is important for donors to understand developing economies’ capacities to build and leverage digital. We created this benchmarking tool to support DFID program managers better understand the different topics that are critical towards building a digital economy.

Low levels of access to clean and affordable electricity remain a major barrier to development across much of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). About 600m Africans do not have access to electricity. However, in recent years, increasing sales of stand-alone Solar Home Systems (SHS) have offered a solution to many households that might otherwise have waited many […]

Jinja Mayor Majid Batambuze challenged experts at Habitat III to come up with innovative ways for his city to implement the UN’s New Urban Agenda. Hosted by Rubbina Karruna, Cities Adviser at DFID, the session was designed and facilitated by ICED Urban team to explore the proposition that African secondary cities can act as linchpins […]

ICED developed a business case for mini-grid electrification in remote communities in Sierra Leone using innovative private-sector business models

Do ‘smart cities’ bear relevance in the burgeoning cities of the global south? Basic infrastructure and service provision shortfalls faced by many southern cities present a challenging context for ‘smart’ solutions; and certainly contrasting to those of many existing ‘smart cities.’

The ICED facility has undertaken an analysis of Zimbabwe’s urban trends for DFID’s Zimbabwe country office. This analysis was done in order to better understand urban trends and dynamics in Zimbabwe which can inform future urban programming.

DFID’s Economic Development Strategy (2017) recognises climate change as ‘the biggest global threat to sustained economic development’. Climate resilient infrastructure can accommodate the shocks and stresses posed by extreme weather events and climate change, while supporting economies and communities (particularly the poor and vulnerable) to survive, adapt and thrive in the face of these challenges. […]

This briefing note reviews the evidence relating to the costs and benefits of infrastructure resilience, considers potential financing options and discusses how DFID staff can ensure value for money during investment decision-making. Infrastructure investments typically have longer lifetimes than other forms of development finance. Operating lives of assets relating to the transport, water and power […]

This briefing note provides an overview of UK built environment industry best practice approaches to planning, designing and assessing climate resilient infrastructure.

In December, the ICED facility hosted a number of Quarterly Lessons Learnt (QLL) sessions. Attached are slides from the  session sharing highlights and opportunities from the ESMAP Conference. The session was supplemented with case studies from the ICED facility drawing from our recent work in system planning and NDCs, Sierra Leone, on and off grid, and the […]