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The 2017 EDF Pulse Africa awards attracted 103 projects from 17 African countries. Among the finalists, the multidisciplinary Grand Jury awarded the following projects :

1st prize: MAJIK WATER, a project led by Kenyan entrepreneur Beth Koigi to develop atmospheric water generators supplied with power by solar panels in order to convert humidity in the air into water. “Access to drinking water is one of the continent’s greatest challenges. Our solution helps prevent the spread of certain diseases, thereby helping to save lives. EDF Pulse Africa gives us the opportunity to cross borders and develop our project in francophone Africa. Our project lead team is made up of three women. Female entrepreneurship in Africa must be encouraged,” said Beth Koigi.

2nd prize: LONO, a startup based in Côte d’Ivoire, converts organic waste into biogas for use as cooking fuel, and into biomethane for electricity generation. “Comparing our ideas, sharing our working methods and pooling our knowledge has enabled all of the project leaders to gain a broader outlook. Organic waste represents an inexhaustible source of energy which still receives insufficient attention in Africa,” said Louise Bijleveld, co-founder of LONO.

3rd prize: EDUAIR, led by Yann Nkengue from Cameroon, involves marketing digital boxes that enable access to a wide range of digital content without an Internet connection. The boxes, connected and supplied with power 24 hours a day, help to reduce the digital divide. “Being an entrepreneur is a complex thing to be involved in, and I’m proud to go back to my country with this prize, which will be a source of motivation for our teams. It’s really rewarding, and it will give us a boost whenever we face difficulties with financing or with our profile,” explained Yann Nkengue.

The panel also decided to award a special “coup de coeur” prize to Nicolas Sancy for his NANOE project, which provides a collective solution for the production, storage and distribution of solar energy at local level.

The 2018 EDF Pulse Africa awards attracted 432 projects from 24 African countries, mainly English speakers. Among the finalists, the multidisciplinary Grand Jury awarded the following projects:

1st prize: SAVANNA CIRCUIT TECH (“Electricity uses & services” category; Kenya) Savanna Circuit Tech Ltd. submitted a solar-powered portable milk-cooling system. This system reduces milk losses, which are highly detrimental for small-holder farmers and which are due to transportation distances and the absence of preservation infrastructures. The system also helps to combat food insecurity by eliminating the risk of bacteria proliferation. In addition, the solution comprises a platform which can be accessed by smartphone and which enables milk producers to maximise their profits.

2nd prize: BLACK STAR ENERGY LTD (“Off-grid power generation” category; Ghana) This start-up from Ghana specializes in the development of mini-grids. The company already operates 15 of them in Ghana and aims to connect more than 12,000 Ghanaians to the grid by the end of the year. The system has a very high capability factor (over 98%) and allows clients to track their energy usage and pay their bills via smartphone. The customer relation platform is flexible enough to meet a wide range of customer needs and apply customized time-of-use tariffs.

3rd prize: SOLARCREED (“Off-grid power” category; Nigeria) SolarCreed provides Nigerian poultry farmers with solar-powered lighting systems as a replacement for fossil-fuelled lighting systems which accounts for 30% of farmers’ operation costs. Using solar panels, long-life lithium-ion batteries and LED lamps, this system provides up to 10 hours of lighting.

Joint 3rd prize: WATER ACCESS RWANDA (“Access to water” category; Rwanda) Water Access Rwanda has developed a solar-powered kiosk for the distribution of drinking water. It comprises a water treatment and distribution device called "INUMA", powered by solar energy and equipped with a powerful filtration system. One INUMA kiosk can provide 2,500 people with purified drinking water. In addition, the INUMA kiosk also serves as a sales outlet for sanitation products, filters, chlorine tablets and telecommunication services, as well as savings and micro-finance systems.

Special prize: SAVE OUR AGRICULTURE (“Access to water” category; Cameroon) Specializing in aquaponics (a food production system that combines aquaculture with agriculture) this start-up designs kits, for individual and professional clients, that use fish waste as fertilizer to grow organic food. The product is powered by solar panels ; it requires 10% of the amount of water used by traditional farming methods, reduces the amount of impurities in fish water tanks by 90% and eliminates the use of chemical fertilizers.

The 2019 EDF Pulse Africa awards attracted 56 projects from 26 African countries. Among the 10 finalists, the multidisciplinary Grand Jury awarded the following projects:

1st prize: LIFILED (Category Electricity uses & services, Ivory Coast - Côte d’Ivoire) LIFILED is a 3-in-1 package designed for rural communities. It combines access to off-grid electricity and to Internet with a supply of educational content on farming know-how. The electricity generated by off-grid solar panels powers a LIFI network comprising LED lamps, which uses light for data-transmission purposes. The photons emitted by LED lamps open a passband that can transmit any type of message that is compatible with all commercially available telephones. The start-up already has several BtoB customers in Côte d’Ivoire.

2nd prize: Energy Cycle (Category Electricity uses & services, Togo) The innovation developed by Energy Cycle uses the energy generated by two-wheeled vehicles to recharge small appliances like cell phones by means of a USB cable or to power rechargeable lamps. The device designed by Energy Cycle can be attached to any type of motorcycle, scooter or moped. The start-up is targeting two-wheeled vehicle users in rural areas as well as transport companies in urban areas, thereby offering their customers an additional service.

3rd prize: Hydrobox (Category Off-Grid electricity generation, Kenya) The Kenyan start-up Hydrobox manufactures and installs small standard and modular hydro-power plants (so called because they fit into containers) with a generation capacity ranging from 100 kW to 5MW depending on the flow of the river and the slope of the site. Easy to transport and install, Hydrobox can be connected to conventional grids or can power off-grid networks in Kenya’s most remote areas. The electrical output generated by Hydrobox enables remote villages to enjoy the benefits of a constant power supply, thereby stimulating local economic growth.

ESCP Europe "coup de coeur" prize: Clean Energy Services (Category Electricity uses & services, Cameroun) The Ivory Coast start-up Clean Energy Services markets off-grid power generation packages designed for freezers and fridges on isolated sites. Kits sold by Clean Energy Services comprise solar panels, a modified fridge and LED lamps. All of this has been made possible through the sale on credit in exchange for an initial deposit amounting to 20% of the kit’s value. The package is specifically designed for users on isolated sites whose work requires cold storage: catering, sale of fresh produce (meat, fish, etc.)

Special prize Boost by EDF: Plentify (Category Electricity uses & services, South Africa) Plentify has come up with the clever idea of rationalising power distributed by national companies through the conversion of urban apartment boilers into smart batteries which are recharged when there is a lot of power and which redistribute electricity during peak demand periods, thereby cutting down on the use of polluting energy sources. This solution has helped households to save more than 50% on their electricity bills.

The 2021 EDF Pulse Africa awards attracted 587 projects from near to the half of the 54 African countries. Among 12 the finalists, the Grand Jury awarded the following projects:

In first place, the start-up Green Engineering Services (Burkina Faso), for its solar mill solutions that produce flour using electricity from entirely renewable energy sources.

In second place, the start-up My Energy Clever (Cameroon), which allows its users – businesses or households – to improve energy efficiency using a digital remote management solution accessible on smartphones. Which helps to reduce the level of energy consumption of its users and, consequently, the level of their expenses.

In joint third place, start-ups BMTA & C (Morocco) and Green Agro Valley CI (Ivory Coast). BMTA & C provides cooling units to reduce crop losses for the most isolated smallholders and farmers in Morocco and around. Green Agro Valley CI offers low-coast boreholes equipped with submerged solar pump, in order to facilitate access to drinking water in rural areas in Ivory Coast and West Africa.

The start-up Jirogasy (Madagascar) wins the "jury's favorite" prize for its connected objects and solar kits (generators and computers) "made in Madagascar", which it deploys via a network of partners in dispensaries and schools in non-electrified areas.