Zonful Energy

Zimbabwe | Digital Inclusion

Company

Zonful Energy provides modular, decentralised and scalable PAYG solar energy systems to rural, urban and peri-urban off-grid customers.

Problem

In Zimbabwe, only 56.5% of the population use the internet, which means 7.6 million people are not online.

Solution

By procuring, marketing and distributing low-cost smartphones and data bundles with 24-month data plans from Econet, Zonful Energy aims to reduce the mobile internet gap in Zimbabwe through an affordable PAYG model. Smartphones and data bundles are available to both their SHS customers and other customers. With the GSMA grant they received in March 2021, they also tackled the digital skills barrier by teaching customers how to use mobile internet through the GSMA Mobile Internet Skills Training Toolkit (MISTT), in collaboration with Econet.

Impact

Since partnering with the GSMA, Zonful Energy has:

– Sold 8,500 PAYG smartphones, 5,100 of which to women. Their customers purchased more than 14,000 GB of data during the GSMA grant period.

– Hosted 114 digital clinics in different regions of Zimbabwe, with MISTT content translated into two local languages as part of the grant.

– Been ranked by SolarEyes International as one of Zimbabwe’s fastest growing and innovative solar companies.

A message from the founder

“There is a huge potential to scale. We have gone through the pilot and already there is a huge demand in terms of customers wanting to move away from the basic phones.”

– William Ponella, Founder and CEO

Founder
A man with a serious expression, wearing a blue suit, light blue shirt, and black tie, stands in front of a plain beige background. He is bald and has a medium build. He is looking directly at the camera.

William Ponella

Team | 10-50 employees

A large group of people, wearing orange and green shirts, are gathered outdoors on a sunny day, radiating Zonful energy. Some are standing while others kneel or sit on the grass. A variety of trees and a clear blue sky can be seen in the background.

Videos