©©FAO/Alaa Badarneh
Access to reliable, affordable clean energy remains a challenge for many rural communities around the world. In response, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched two innovative renewable energy projects aimed at tackling energy access and efficiency challenges in rural communities in Jamaica and Jordan. These initiatives are being supported through FAO’s ELEVATE Incubator Programme, under the guidance of the Office of Innovation (OIN).
ELEVATE is FAO’s first in-house incubator, designed to strengthen innovation across FAO and Through mentorship, seed funding, and expert guidance, ELEVATE supports transforming bold ideas into impactful solutions that address food security and sustainability challenges, transforming the agrifood sector.
The project “Mesh grid systems for innovative rural energy communities in Jamaica” addresses the country’s high energy costs and unreliable grid infrastructure, particularly in rural areas. In collaboration with FAO Jamaica and the FAO Subregional Office for the Caribbean, the project introduces mesh-grid s for remote communities. This innovative solution features a decentralized smart energy management system at the community-level that integrates a small-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) array with a biogas plant powered by poultry manure generated on-site.
The mesh-grid system connects multiple farms and homes through a local energy network, managed by a smart energy system that monitors supply and demand in real time. This ensures continuous electricity availability. When solar generation is low, such as during nighttime or cloudy weather, the biogas plant automatically compensates to maintain a stable and reliable energy flow.
By using farm waste to generate power, this project can improve electricity access in rural communities and reduce harmful emissions. This reliable supply of clean energy helps increase agricultural productivity and the establishment of self-sustaining energy communities in Jamaica’s rural areas.  
The project, “Lowering costs via efficiency gains of solar energy systems in Jordan”, implemented with FAO Jordan and the FAO Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa, focuses on improving the efficiency and lifespan of solar PV systems in high-temperature environments. In fact, the performance of solar PV panels drops by 0.5 percent for every degree above 25°C, forcing farmers to buy bigger, hence more expensive, solar systems. This inefficiency imposes heavy financial burdens on families and compromises the potential of solar energy to serve as a reliable source of power for rural communities. Cooling the panels is a technological and management challenge that remains largely un addressed in agrifood systems.
The project aims to develop a prototype floating solar PV system with active liquid cooling, using water from reservoirs to maintain panel’s temperature within the optimal power production range.
This innovation is expected to increase energy output by up to 20 percent, reduce land use, and extend the lifespan of solar installations, benefiting rural communities, aquaculture operations, and desalination plants.
Both projects were selected during the 2025 ELEVATE Bootcamp, from over 95 proposals submitted to the ELEVATE/OIN call for innovation. They will receive seed funding and technical support over the next 8 to 10 months to refine and implement their activities.
These efforts advance our mission to deliver sustainable, cost-effective energy solutions to rural communities, and highlight FAO’s commitment to innovation through locally adapted approaches that empower rural areas and enhance climate resilience.

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