Smiling Through Light delivering electricity access to Sierra Leone with women-focused business model

Smiling Through Light is a social enterprise in Sierra Leone that recruits and trains local women to sell solar-powered lamps, addressing a national electricity access rate of 13 percent. Founded by Mariama Kamara, the business aims to transition women from energy consumers to leaders in the energy transition. In 2019, the company created 15 local jobs and sold approximately 700 solar products. The enterprise also launched the 'One Child One Lamp' campaign, providing lighting to about 400 children in Kamayama, which reportedly improved students' grades and safety. Kamara aims to expand the network to 300-500 women within five years and eventually enter Guinea and Liberia, though she notes that scaling is hindered by investor risk aversion toward African entrepreneurs, particularly young women.

• Smiling Through Light operates as a social enterprise in Sierra Leone that trains local women to become solar technology entrepreneurs who sell solar-powered lamps in their communities. This model addresses a significant energy gap, as nationwide electricity access is 13 percent and only 1 percent in rural areas.
• The business model prioritizes female empowerment by positioning women as leaders of the energy transition rather than just consumers, based on the premise that women are the most effective salespeople for household energy products due to their market understanding.
• In 2019, the company created 15 local jobs and sold roughly 700 solar products. Additionally, the 'One Child One Lamp' campaign provided free lighting to approximately 400 children in Kamayama, with monitoring and evaluation indicating improved student grades and increased safety at night.
• The founder, Mariama Kamara, intends to grow the network to 300-500 women in Sierra Leone over the next five years and eventually expand into Liberia and Guinea. However, scaling is limited by a lack of finance and perceived risk aversion among investors regarding African entrepreneurs and young women.

APA

Sustainable Energy for All (2019). Smiling Through Light delivering electricity access to Sierra Leone with women-focused business model. https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/smiling-through-light-delivering-electricity-access-to-sierra-leone-with-women

Chicago

Sustainable Energy for All. Smiling Through Light delivering electricity access to Sierra Leone with women-focused business model. 2019. https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/smiling-through-light-delivering-electricity-access-to-sierra-leone-with-women.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Sustainable Energy for All |title=Smiling Through Light delivering electricity access to Sierra Leone with women-focused business model |date=20 August 2019 |url=https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/smiling-through-light-delivering-electricity-access-to-sierra-leone-with-women |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sustainableenergyforall2019smiling, author = {{Sustainable Energy for All}}, title = {{Smiling Through Light delivering electricity access to Sierra Leone with women-focused business model}}, institution = {Sustainable Energy for All}, year = {2019}, month = aug, url = {https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/smiling-through-light-delivering-electricity-access-to-sierra-leone-with-women}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }