Magazine

Last edition
december 2025

Home › Renewable energy ›ISA, SELCO Foundation Sign MoU to Scale Solar Livelihood Solutions Across Global South

ISA, SELCO Foundation Sign MoU to Scale Solar Livelihood Solutions Across Global South

The International Solar Alliance and SELCO Foundation have signed an MoU to jointly scale solar-led livelihood and productive-use solutions across Africa and other Global South regions, shifting the focus from energy access to measurable development impact.

January 13, 2026. By Mrinmoy Dey

The International Solar Alliance (ISA) and SELCO Foundation have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on expanding solar-led livelihood and productive-use solutions across Africa and other Global South countries.

The MoU was formalised following a dialogue between Ashish Khanna, Director General, ISA, and Harish Hande, CEO, SELCO Foundation, which focused on moving beyond energy access to impact-driven deployment linked to livelihoods, health and dignity.

The discussion underscored the need to shift from fragmented pilot projects to scalable platforms that align policy, finance, technology and community institutions.

Under the agreement, ISA and SELCO Foundation will work together to scale decentralised solar solutions for income generation, strengthen institutional and human capacity, and promote South–South and state-to-state learning. The partnership will also explore the use of AI-enabled tools and local-language knowledge systems to improve access to practical, ground-level insights, while catalysing finance by linking global initiatives with grassroots implementation models.

Speaking during the dialogue, Khanna emphasised the growing demand for action-oriented collaboration, while Hande highlighted that India’s contribution to the global energy transition lies in sharing lived, on-the-ground experience rather than exporting products alone.

Both organisations said the partnership will focus on accountability and execution, with an emphasis on replicable models that can support inclusive energy transitions across emerging economies.

Tags:

Solar PV

International Solar Alliance

SELCO Foundation

ISA MoU with SELCO Foundation

Ashish Khanna

Harish Hande

Solar-led livelihood

South-South Collaboration

Decentralised solar projects