Divine Bamboo creating local market for clean cooking in Uganda

Divine Bamboo is a Ugandan social enterprise founded in 2016 that produces bamboo-based briquettes as a sustainable alternative to charcoal and firewood. The company utilizes fast-growing local bamboo to create fuel with higher calorific value and lower costs, potentially reducing household fuel expenditure by 50 percent. As a recipient of the 2020 Energy Access Booster Award, Divine Bamboo intends to use up to USD 50,000 in support to acquire automated equipment and scale production to four tonnes of briquettes per month. The enterprise has already trained 350 small-scale farmers, primarily women and youth, and aims to reduce charcoal and firewood consumption from unsustainable sources by 20 percent in Kampala over five years.

• Divine Bamboo produces bamboo-based briquettes that are more efficient and affordable than traditional fuels, with the potential to cut household fuel spending by 50 percent, costing USD 0.32 per kilogram compared to USD 0.64 for charcoal.
• Since 2016, the enterprise has established itself as Uganda's largest producer of bamboo seedlings, with an annual capacity of 400,000 seedlings and approximately 25 hectares of bamboo planted.
• The company has focused on local economic development by training 350 small-scale farmers, mostly women and youth, in bamboo plantation establishment and briquette production as an agro-forestry crop.
• With the support of the Energy Access Booster Award, which provides up to USD 50,000 and consulting, Divine Bamboo aims to scale production to four tonnes of briquettes per month through automated equipment and new technical staff.
• Divine Bamboo's five-year objectives include employing at least 300 people, training an additional 250 people in the value chain, and reducing the use of unsustainable charcoal and firewood by 20 percent in Kampala.

APA

Sustainable Energy for All (2020). Divine Bamboo creating local market for clean cooking in Uganda. https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/divine-bamboo-creating-local-market-for-clean-cooking-in-uganda

Chicago

Sustainable Energy for All. Divine Bamboo creating local market for clean cooking in Uganda. 2020. https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/divine-bamboo-creating-local-market-for-clean-cooking-in-uganda.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Sustainable Energy for All |title=Divine Bamboo creating local market for clean cooking in Uganda |date=30 April 2020 |url=https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/divine-bamboo-creating-local-market-for-clean-cooking-in-uganda |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sustainableenergyforall2020divine, author = {{Sustainable Energy for All}}, title = {{Divine Bamboo creating local market for clean cooking in Uganda}}, institution = {Sustainable Energy for All}, year = {2020}, month = apr, url = {https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/divine-bamboo-creating-local-market-for-clean-cooking-in-uganda}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }