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Easy Solar has received international recognition after its partnership with the REAL Programme Catalyst contributed to winning the 2026 Ashden Award for Solving Energy Challenges, one of the world’s most respected honours for climate and clean energy innovation.
The award, presented by the UK-based Ashden organization, recognizes initiatives that are delivering practical solutions to climate and energy challenges while improving livelihoods. The REAL Programme Catalyst was honoured for its work in expanding access to clean, affordable electricity through its Energy as a Service model, implemented in partnership with Easy Solar across rural Sierra Leone.
Easy Solar described the recognition as a significant milestone for both organizations, noting that the award highlights the growing global impact of efforts to expand reliable energy access to underserved communities.
A key feature of the award presentation was the inclusion of Easy Solar’s Managing Director for Energy as a Service, Akam Kpaka, who appeared in the award video discussing the company’s work through the Lite Salone initiative. The video also showcased rural communities benefiting from the programme, underscoring Sierra Leone’s contribution to advancing global energy access.
According to Easy Solar, the partnership with the REAL Programme has developed into Africa’s largest Energy as a Service initiative, providing clean electricity to thousands of households through a fully maintained, service-based model that eliminates upfront installation costs.
The company highlighted Kambia District as a major success story, where it has installed 10,000 solar home systems, enabling households to access reliable lighting, phone charging and other essential electricity services. The initiative has reduced dependence on kerosene lamps and other unsafe or unreliable energy sources while improving living conditions for rural families.
Easy Solar said the Energy as a Service model ensures that customers receive continuous maintenance and technical support, allowing households to benefit from reliable electricity without the financial burden of purchasing and maintaining solar equipment outright.
The company noted that the Ashden Award adds to a growing list of international recognitions it has received in recent years, including being named among TIME’s World’s Top GreenTech Companies, receiving the World Economic Forum’s Schwab Foundation Outstanding Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2019, and being listed among the Financial Times’ Africa’s Fastest Growing Companies in 2023.
Easy Solar stated that the latest recognition reinforces confidence in its approach to rural electrification and demonstrates that large-scale, sustainable energy access can be successfully delivered in underserved communities.
The company congratulated the REAL Programme Catalyst on the achievement and expressed appreciation to its staff, partners and the communities that have supported the initiative, reaffirming its commitment to expanding access to clean and reliable electricity across Sierra Leone.
