Kenyan climate-tech company SunCulture has raised USD 5 million in fresh funding from WaterEquity, a global asset manager dedicated to water and sanitation solutions. This marks the first investment from WaterEquity’s Water & Climate Resilience Fund, which is backed by major global corporates including Microsoft, Starbucks, and Xylem. The new capital comes on the heels of SunCulture’s USD 4 million raise earlier this year, underscoring investor confidence in the company’s mission to transform water access for rural households and farmers in Africa.
Addressing Rural Water Challenges
Access to clean and reliable water remains one of Africa’s most pressing challenges, with over 80 percent of rural communities relying on external collection points. This burden disproportionately falls on women and girls, who spend hours each day fetching water. SunCulture seeks to tackle this challenge by providing solar-powered irrigation systems that also double as household water solutions for drinking, cooking, and cleaning.
Innovative Model and Impact
Founded in 2013 by Samir Ibrahim and Charlie Nichols, SunCulture offers a “pay-as-you-grow” financing model that enables smallholder farmers to pay for irrigation systems in installments. This approach has helped the company sell more than 45,000 units to date, making solar-powered water pumps accessible to communities that previously relied on expensive diesel or manual systems. More than 90 percent of SunCulture’s customers also use the technology for their household water needs, making the solution both agricultural and domestic in impact.
Product Evolution and Technology
Over the years, SunCulture has introduced several products to expand its reach and effectiveness. Its RainMaker series, combined with IoT-enabled ClimateSmart technology, provides farmers with real-time monitoring, powering appliances, and efficient drip irrigation solutions. The company has also launched My SunCulture, a digital platform that connects farmers to services, financing, and educational tools, reinforcing its role as both a cleantech innovator and an enabler of digital inclusion.
Strategic Backing from WaterEquity
WaterEquity’s investment highlights a growing recognition of water access as both a climate resilience issue and a commercial opportunity. According to Aleem Remtula, Head of Private Equity and Infrastructure Investments at WaterEquity, SunCulture exemplifies the type of adaptation-focused company the fund is designed to support. The fund brings together diverse global investors whose backing signals increasing private sector involvement in solving the water and sanitation funding gap.
Broader Investment History and Recognition
The latest funding builds on a series of capital raises by SunCulture in recent years. In 2024, the company secured USD 27.5 million to scale across sub-Saharan Africa, with contributions from platforms like Nithio. Earlier, it received funding from EDF, Energy Access Ventures, and SunFunder to expand its reach and develop affordable new products. SunCulture has also been recognized globally, including being named a World Economic Forum Tech Pioneer in 2022.
Future Expansion Plans
With the new funding, SunCulture intends to expand beyond Kenya into Uganda, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Zambia, and Togo. The company aims to scale its manufacturing and distribution while strengthening financing operations that make its products more accessible. CEO Samir Ibrahim emphasized that the partnership with WaterEquity will enable the company to deepen its impact while continuing to prove that water investments can generate both financial returns and societal benefits.
SunCulture’s latest capital raise reinforces its position as one of Africa’s most promising climate-tech companies. By combining clean energy, innovative financing, and digital tools, it is addressing some of the continent’s most critical water and agricultural challenges. As it prepares for regional expansion, SunCulture is poised to play a pivotal role in shaping a more sustainable and water-secure future for millions of households across Africa.