d.light, a renowned global provider of life-changing household products and accessible finance for low-income households and communities in developing regions, announced today that it has positively impacted the lives of 150 million people worldwide. Despite prevailing economic uncertainties worldwide, d.light continues to expand its reach, attracting new users and growing its global customer base.
The extensive range of household products offered by d.light includes solar-powered lanterns, cookstoves, solar home systems, TVs, radios, and smartphones, accompanied by their affordable PayGo personal finance service. Among the company’s customers, 55.5 percent reside in sub-Saharan Africa, with East Africa accounting for 45 percent. India is home to 37 percent of their customers, while the rest of Asia accounts for four percent. Latin America encompasses 3.5 percent of their customer base.
Expressing his thoughts on this milestone, d.light CEO Nick Imudia emphasized the transformative impact of their products on customers’ lives. He highlighted that their solar-powered energy home systems provide reliable energy to off-grid households and remote communities that lack access to national or local microgrids. These systems not only save money and reduce emissions but also create new opportunities for individuals and businesses. For instance, solar lanterns enable children to study at night and businesses to remain open after sunset.
Imudia further explained that d.light’s solar-powered cookstoves eliminate the need for households to rely on traditional wood or fuel-burning stoves. By removing the use of kerosene, charcoal, or other polluting fuels for cooking, families experience improved personal health, enhanced safety at home, and reduced carbon emissions.
The CEO highlighted the significance of affordable radios, TVs, and smartphones offered through d.light’s PayGo financing service. These devices enable households to access broadcast news, entertainment, and the internet, often for the first time. This newfound access empowers individuals for educational and business purposes, broadening their opportunities.
Moreover, d.light’s PayGo service provides loans to the underbanked and unbanked, enabling them to establish a credit history and access other personal finance products and services.
Achieving the remarkable milestone of 150 million customers has come amid significant challenges for both d.light and its customers in the past three years. The global economy’s turbulence, compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, followed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, has disrupted supply chains, led to soaring global energy prices, and triggered a rise in inflation and currency devaluation in the regions where d.light operates.
These economic difficulties have forced customers to shift towards more affordable products. In response, d.light has introduced new products supported by their PayGo personal finance service, including a budget-friendly model of PayGo solar lantern.
To assist customers facing climate change-related hardships and financial constraints, d.light has implemented loan restructuring to align with their repayment capacity. In severe cases, the company has provided outright debt relief through funding secured in 2022, thanks to partnerships with organizations like Shell and Kawi Safi Ventures.
Looking ahead, d.light’s next objective is to impact the lives of one billion people worldwide by 2030. They plan to achieve this by expanding their distribution in existing countries and markets across sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, as well as venturing into new markets within these regions. Building upon the success of their recent product launches, such as solar lanterns, cookstoves, TVs, and solar inverters, d.light aims to introduce more innovative and transformative products in the near future, further propelling their growth potential.