Recommendation 3

HM Government Accepted

Partially Agree 16. Through our TEA and Modern Energy Cooking Services (MECS) programmes we have established a strong approach to fostering local partnerships and inclusion. More broadly, under the Ayrton Fund for clean energy innovation, we recently concluded a study to capture best practices, lessons and recommendations on Locally-Led Action and Equitable Partnerships across the wider Ayrton energy innovation portfolio, to help embed and strengthen localisation and inclusion principles in programming. 17. British International Investment (BII) places a strong emphasis on transparency, demonstrated by its recognition as the world’s most transparent bilateral Development Finance Institution by Publish What You Fund (PWYF) in the 2025 DFI Transparency Index. BII investments provide clean energy to over 26 million people across sub-Saharan Africa including 7 million via distributed renewable energy solutions, and transmission and distribution (T&D) projects. BII will continue to invest in expanding energy access in line with its Impact Framework. 18. In applying its Responsible Investing Policy, BII works with its investees to ensure stakeholder and community engagement is considered and appropriate mechanisms are put in place. This can include dedicated consultation processes and the establishment of grievance mechanisms. For example, at BII investee Virunga Energies in eastern DRC, close engagement with local communities was achieved through involving key community stakeholders throughout project execution via representatives in each community. This includes ongoing information sharing, awareness, and training sessions on Virunga Energies’ infrastructure and on emergency response as well as grievance registries through phone, WhatsApp, and email. 19. In addition to project level information, Virunga Energies also works closely with communities supporting reforestation activities to mitigate flood risk and awareness raising sessions against gender-based violence and harassment. More information on the impact of BII’s investment in Virunga Energies can be found in this recent independent evaluation.1 20. While we recognise the value of community-led energy projects, at this stage, HMG is unable to make firm commitments to any policy or programme beyond the confirmed budgets for FY25/26. However, we commit to bearing the Committee’s recommendation in mind in allocations. Meaningful Community Engagement Conclusion and Recommendation 4 (Conclusion 5, paragraph 43) Energy access projects and programmes are more likely to succeed when they are genuinely co-designed with local stakeholders, inclusive of marginalised groups, and supported by long-term capacity strengthening. (Recommendation 4, paragraph 45) The Government should make inclusive community participation across all stages of design, governance, and implementation a condition of UK funding for energy access. This should involve recognising and resourcing communities, particularly marginalised groups, as decision-makers. Government Response: Agree 21. The FCDO recognises that insufficient community engagement can undermine the effectiveness, sustainability, and equity of energy access projects. The FCDO promotes community engagement through inclusive models such as cooperatives, public-private partnerships, and locally governed projects. In our interventions, we place Gender, Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) principles at the centre of our approach, ensuring value for money in delivery, while addressing systemic barriers like financing gaps, regulatory hurdles, and infrastructure limitations. 1 https://www.bii.co.uk/en/news-insight/insight/articles/how-does-access-to-green- energy-transform-rural-communities-insights-from-virunga-energies/ Our Centre of Expertise in Green Cities, Infrastructure and Energy has developed a GEDSI toolkit that has attracted extensive interest from partners and is being piloted in the energy sector in Zambia. 22. Programmes like TEA and MECS include a focus on local partnerships and inclusive design, for example supporting local researchers and innovators to participate in wider regional calls for proposals and build partnerships with UK and other international researchers and innovators. 23. The FCDO is also investing in locally led action and equitable partnerships, with a dedicated study commissioned in 2025 across the Ayrton Fund portfolio to identify best practices and gaps in community engagement. This work will inform future clean energy innovation programming and help ensure that community voices are central to project design and delivery. 24. We recognise the importance of inclusive community participation across all stages of design, governance, and implementation, and we actively promote these principles in our energy access programmes. Current FCDO guidance and delivery models encourage participatory approaches, including gender and social inclusion, and require partners to demonstrate engagement w