The MECS programme focuses on 16 countries of interest situated in the Global South. These countries are divided into Tier 1 and Tier 2 categories, depending on the strength of the connection and relevance to the MECS programme. The countries of interest will be reassessed on a six-monthly basis throughout the duration of the MECS programme.
Tier 1 countries
The following are the countries that the partnership has had collective connections with and interest in, and which seem to fulfil the 4 key criteria of:
- ‘Cooking landscape’ – dominated by biomass and a government seeking to do something different;
- ‘Modern energy landscape’ – modern energy access generally poor with challenges on supply chains and key infrastructure, but with a government wanting to improve the situation;
- Poverty – the country as a whole is a FCDO priority country and a large proposition of the population are poor;
- Renewable resource – a substantial resource of renewable energy as yet barely tapped.
Bangladesh, Ghana, India, Kenya, Malawi, Nepal, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia.
Tier 2 countries
The following are the countries that the MECS partnership has an interest in, had some light touch connections with, and which seem to fulfil the four key criteria as defined above:
Bhutan, Cambodia, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Myanmar, Nigeria.