Agrivoltaics in East Africa: opportunities and challenges

Agrivoltaic systems concommitently tackle food and energy security challenges on the same area of land, while also improving farmer livelihoods. Designed correctly, they can increase crop yields by reducing water and heat stresses; yield improvements depend on a range of factors including the available photosynthetically active radiation and the shade tolerance of the crop varieties. Several agrivoltaic pilot studies have been developed over the past decade, predominantly in the Global North, but there is an evidence gap in East Africa where the environmental conditions and livelihood challenges faced by agricultural communities mean there are potentially far greater benefits from agrivoltaic technology. In this paper, we discuss how the environmental conditions, electricity supply and access, farming systems, and political scenarios present opportunities and challenges for using agrivoltaic systems to address sustainable development goals in East Africa. We end by summarising what is required to support development of this technology in the region and realise the potential benefits.