Affordable Access Models
The biggest barrier to clean cooking is the upfront cost. SESCOM works with utilities, savings groups, and microfinance partners so every household can switch to electric cooking on terms that fit their income.
Affordable Access
Four ways to own a SESCOM appliance
A market-based approach: each model removes a different barrier, whether upfront cost, access to credit, awareness, or last-mile reach.
VICOBA / SACCOS Group Financing
Women's savings and credit groups pool resources to buy EPCs in bulk, then individual members repay the group on flexible terms. Proven in Kilimanjaro and Morogoro, with over 140 groups now part of the SESCOM network.
- No upfront cost for members
- Trust built on existing community ties
- Group purchasing prices below retail
- Hands-on cooking training on collection day
TANESCO LUKU On-Bill Financing Pilot
In partnership with TANESCO, customers acquire EPCs and repay through their monthly LUKU electricity bill, using the same payment channel they already trust. The 17-month TANESCO project targets 11,000+ households.
- Pay through your existing electricity meter
- No new account or paperwork
- "Pay as you cook" matches the savings to the bill
- Boosts grid-connected electricity utilisation
Layaway / Instalment Plans
Reserve your EPC with a small deposit, pay the balance in flexible instalments, and collect when fully paid. Designed for customers without access to a savings group or grid connection.
- Small initial deposit
- Weekly or monthly instalments
- Pick up at any of the 3 business centres or via sales agent
- No interest, no hidden fees
Direct Cash Purchase
The simplest path. Buy your EPC outright at any business centre, through a sales agent, or via the SESCOM shop. Includes 2-year manufacturer warranty, Swahili manual, and after-sales support.
- Best value pricing
- 2-year manufacturer warranty
- Spare parts and service nationwide
- Free customer training on collection
Lessons From the Field
Socio-cultural barriers, and how we overcame them
Pricing alone does not move households off charcoal. Five non-financial barriers consistently surfaced in our work with VICOBA / SACCOS groups and households. Here is what each barrier looked like, and the specific intervention that worked.
Household decision-making dominated by men
How we overcame it: VICOBA and SACCOS channels where women exercise collective financial agency. Group purchasing builds women's autonomy outside the household hierarchy and shifts the buying decision into a space women already control.
Negative perception and low trust in new cooking technology
How we overcame it: Live product demonstrations and embedded sales-agent engagement. Word-of-mouth within savings groups, Swahili manuals, and ongoing customer support build confidence that the product is reliable and the company stands behind it.
Charcoal and firewood are deeply embedded in culture
How we overcame it: Training that focuses on time savings, health benefits, and lower long-run fuel cost rather than the appliance itself. Cooking diaries and demonstration data drive evidence-based behaviour change. We learn how different cultures cook and translate their recipes into e-recipes that taste exactly like — or better than — the traditional version.
Language and complex digital appliance barriers
How we overcame it: We started customers on simple rotary EPCs. Customers who participated in the initial cooking diaries showed interest in the digital / button models, so the 8 L digital was introduced in response. Translated manuals, customised EPCs, hands-on training, and Swahili tutorial videos close the language gap.
Affordability
How we overcame it: End-user financing models (third-party group financing, TANESCO on-bill repayment, lay-away). Strategic partnerships with TaTEDO-SESO and other stakeholders to undertake advocacy for tax waivers. Subsidy-backed programmes secured with UNCDF, MECS, SNV, and others to keep the upfront price within reach for low-income households.
Why It Matters
Affordability is the lever
An EPC pays for itself in 6–12 months through cooking-cost savings alone. The challenge isn't the maths; it's the upfront cost.
SESCOM's affordable access models make the maths actionable: no household should be locked out of clean cooking by a one-time cash barrier.
For Partners & Investors
Bring electric cooking to your community
Distributors & Dealers
Join a network of 274 sales agents (70% women) embedded in VICOBA / SACCOS groups. Get product training, marketing support, and access to flexible financing models.
Apply as a dealerMFIs & SACCOS
Offer EPC financing to your members with SESCOM as the supply partner. Bulk pricing, dedicated support, and a proven product line designed for the local market.
Talk to usImpact Investors & DFIs
SESCOM is a proven, market-tested platform for clean-cooking transitions in East Africa: 25,000+ appliances sold, 26 regions reached, women-led last-mile distribution.
Investor enquiryPick the model that works for you
Whether you are buying for your household, your savings group, or a programme covering thousands, we have a model for it.