Providing clean energy through hydropower in Kanungu, Uganda

The Kanungu District is located in the Western Region of Uganda.

It has historically been an impoverished district with its population of 205,095 often experiencing power outages that disrupt living on a daily basis.

Energy poverty is one of the most significant challenges facing Africa today. In Uganda, only 46.25% of the population have access to electricity. Providing electricity access is crucial for poverty alleviation, economic growth and improving living standards.

The Ishasha Small Hydropower project supports a 6.6 MW hydropower station which is located 500 meters below the border of Bwindi Forest National Park on the Ishasha river. It harnesses water from the river and drops it approximately 90 meters through two turbines to generate 29.404 GWh of electricity per year. 

This is fed into the Uganda grid, displacing electricity generated from the Uganda source mix. If the project activity was not implemented, the same amount of electricity would be generated from the fossil fuel power plants connected to the grid. Therefore the funding of this project directly prevents the equivalent of 19.027 tonnes of CO2e from entering the atmosphere every year.

As well as providing clean energy to the grid, this hydropower station also enables access to electricity for local communities within the area, providing both social and economic benefits. Without a modern source of electricity, medicine and food cannot be refrigerated, and children cannot study at night or access quality learning resources. Providing access to electricity also facilitates economic growth within the region, supporting the growth of local entrepreneurs and providing potential for industry expansions.

This project is verified by the Verified Carbon Standard. You can view it on the Verra Registry here.