COOKFUND BENEFICIARIES URGED TO INVEST IN SMALL GAS CYLINDERS.




📌 Focus on cylinders weighing three kilograms or less

📌 Goal: To make clean cooking affordable for low-income households

📌 Encouraged to adopt smart meters to enable digital gas purchases similar to electricity tokens (LUKU)


Beneficiaries of capital support through the CookFund project — part of the international Integrated Approach to Sustainable Clean Cooking Solutions program implemented by the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in collaboration with the European Union (EU) — have been urged to direct their investments towards the production and distribution of small gas cylinders weighing three kilograms or less. The aim is to enable low-income households to easily transition to clean cooking energy.


The Director of Clean Cooking Energy in the Ministry of Energy, Nolasco Mlay, made the remarks during his visit to Mwanza, where he inspected clean cooking energy projects funded by CookFund. The projects aim to stimulate the growth of clean cooking energy initiatives in Tanzania.


While in Mwanza, Mlay visited gas retailers who received capital support through the CookFund project to ensure that citizens have easier access to gas services through the empowerment of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the clean cooking energy sector.


He explained that through CookFund, small-scale traders are provided with financial support and technical assistance to expand the distribution of efficient gas stoves and gas cylinders.


Mlay commended the beneficiaries who sell gas cylinders at subsidized prices, ensuring that people can access the service more easily and affordably. He further emphasized the importance of offering smaller gas cylinders weighing between one and three kilograms.


> “We need to see CookFund beneficiaries investing in technologies that directly impact people’s daily lives. Small cylinders are a practical solution that enables more citizens to switch from firewood or charcoal to gas,” said Mlay.


In addition, Mlay called on all clean cooking energy stakeholders to introduce smart meter technology in areas where it is not yet available to simplify the process of purchasing gas digitally and eliminate the challenges associated with refilling cylinders at high cost or long distances.


> “We must ensure clean cooking energy is affordable, accessible, and equipped with user-friendly technologies. With this innovation, citizens will be able to buy gas the same way they purchase electricity via LUKU, which will help address the challenge of gas accessibility, especially for low-income households,” he emphasized.


Mlay also urged the public to continue adopting clean cooking energy sources such as gas, electricity, alternative charcoal, and biogas for better health and a safer environment.


For their part, gas retailers expressed satisfaction with the growing demand for gas among citizens. They noted that some customers are being provided cylinders on credit, while others are paying in small installments to acquire them — a move helping communities shift away from unhealthy and environmentally harmful cooking fuels.


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