KijaniBox is an EU-funded consortium project that aims to improve the cooling infrastructure in Africa. Decentralised biogas plants will generate renewable energy for cooling to reduce food waste that occurs directly at the point of origin due to inadequate refrigeration. The project thus promotes sustainable economic growth and job creation in African countries and Europe.
Dresden, 22 November 2024 – A new international research and innovation project called KijaniBox has started. The aim is to valorise biological waste from public markets, farms and the food processing industry to provide cooling energy. Application solution boxes will be installed at three pilot sites in Kenya and Uganda to test the feasibility of the system solutions developed. The project is supported with EUR 5 million as part of the EU’s funding programme HORIZON and involves 14 institutions from 6 countries. These include universities, local and international companies, markets, fruit-processing producers and agricultural businesses.
Climate change poses major challenges, particularly for countries in the global South. Food cooling is particularly important in East and West Africa due to the constantly high temperatures. The spoilage of a large proportion of food is often due to inadequate energy and cooling infrastructures. At the same time, over 50% of the waste produced is of organic origin. This is where the project comes in: it aims to expand the production and utilisation of renewable energies for food refrigeration in East and West Africa. The utilisation of organic waste addresses the problem of increasing waste volumes and at the same time promotes approaches to circular waste management.
Biogas consists mainly of methane and carbon dioxide and is produced by the microbial decomposition of organic material in the absence of oxygen (anaerobic digestion). Due to its biogenic origin, biogas – in contrast to other fossil fuels such as natural gas, coal or oil – is a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative. The combustion of biogas can generate energy in the form of electricity and heat, which is then used to operate the cooling systems. In addition, the targeted treatment of organic waste helps to reduce the negative consequences of inadequate waste disposal. These include climate-damaging methane emissions from landfill sites, health risks and the release of pollutants into the environment.
About the KIJANIBOX project
The KijaniBox project is coordinated by the Technical University of Dresden (Germany). It includes the following partners: Politecnico di Milano (Italy), Agenzia Nazionale per le Nuove Tecnologie, L’Energia e lo Sviluppo Economico Sostenible (Italy), Waziup e.V. (Germany), Inneurope Initiatives S.L. (Spain), Escola Superior de Comerc Internacional (Spain), Innotec21 GmbH (Germany), Africa Bioenergy Programs Limited (Kenya), Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (Kenya), Solar Freeze Limited (Kenya), Ecoh Holdings Limited (Kenya), Biogas Solutions Uganda Limited by Guarantee (Uganda), National Agricultural Research Organisation (Uganda), Universite Gaston Berger de Saint Louis (Senegal)
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Email | contact@kijanibox.eu
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