Implementing Community-based Agrivoltaic Systems in SSA: Challenges and Mitigation Strategies

premium account

Recording of Wednesday, June 19, 2024 | The smarter E Europe | Conference Program | Language: English | Duration: 14:46 .

Challenges and Mitigation Strategies in Implementing Community-Based Agrivoltaics Projects in Sub-Saharan Africa Highlighted by Fraunhofer Institute's Research

The speaker, a social scientist at the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, introduces their presentation on research outcomes from an agrivoltaics project focused on community-based systems. The project pertains to mitigating challenges in implementing such systems within West Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. Key agricultural activities in these regions include rain-fed farming and pastoralism, which face significant issues due to unreliable rainfall patterns leading to low productivity and food insecurity. Agrivoltaics, combining agriculture with solar energy generation on the same land, shows potential benefits like crop protection and reduced evaporation. The APV MAGA (Agrivoltaics for Mali and the Gambia) project aims to evaluate different technical systems' economic viability while focusing on social implementation aspects. Research indicates that successful projects hinge largely upon human behavior—how people use, install, or finance technologies—as well as political agendas of stakeholders, cooperation during planning phases, public acceptance issues, maintenance concerns post-implementation.

Automated summarization by AI Conver

Jessica Berneiser
Researcher
Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE
Germany

In this session, we take a look at the latest developments in decentralized water-energy-food supply technologies and systems.

Further Talks of this session:

Speaker

Dr. Philipp Blechinger
Head of Unit Off-Grid Systems
Reiner Lemoine Institut gGmbH
Germany

To Talk

Speaker

Bärbel Höhn
BMZ Special Representative for Energy in Africa
Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
Germany

To Talk

Speaker

Stefan Trittler
Head of Innovation / Project Principal
Asantys Systems GmbH
Germany

To Talk

Speaker

Julian Fleischmann
Reseracher and PhD Student
University of Freiburg

To Talk

Speaker

Conference Partner

Deepak Mohapatra
Senior Officer - Business & Market Development
Alliance for Rural Electrification
Belgium

To Talk

To Talk

Further Content
Webinar
EEG Reform & Grid Package – What prospects and potential does Photovoltaics have beyond 2027?

September 18, 2026

New rules for solar and energy storage: The planned EEG reform for 2027 could fundamentally reshape the support framework and market conditions. Join our webinar in cooperation with BSW-Solar to find out what opportunities and challenges these changes may bring to the industry.

Intersolar Middle East Conference 2026
Towards Net Zero: Decarbonizing C&I Sector in MENA with Solar Leasing

Tuesday, September 01, 2026, 04:45 pm

Intersolar Middle East Conference 2026 | Conference Program

premium account

Gain firsthand insights from landmark solar developments transforming the Middle East and North Africa. This session showcases large-scale project successes, innovative technologies, and lessons learned, highlighting how strategic partnerships and bold investments are advancing regional energy goals and setting new benchmarks for global renewable deployment.

Rutger Schlatmann and Angelika Harter
Perovskites: The Race for the Future of PV?

The smarter E Podcast Episode 258 | Language: English

June 25, 2026

HZB researchers explore perovskite tandem solar cells, efficiency gains, and the challenges of bringing the technology to market.

Howard Wenger and Aaron Thurlow
How U.S. Innovators Are Reshaping Solar

The smarter E Podcast Episode 261 | Language: English

July 23, 2026

Live from Munich: Industry leaders discuss Nextpower’s integration of utility-scale storage and Caelux’s breakthrough perovskite-on-glass solar tech.

Tim Meyer
Can Renewables Deliver 24/7 Power?

The smarter E Podcast Episode 259 | Language: English

July 2, 2026

Can renewables power an industrial nation 24/7? Tim Meyer and expert guests discuss breakthrough insights from The smarter E Europe 2026.

You are using an outdated browser

The website cannot be viewed in this browser. Please open the website in an up-to-date browser such as Edge, Chrome, Firefox, or Safari.