Aftrak won in the Energy and Environment category and picked up the main Grand Prix award at The Engineer’s Collaborate to Innovate awards at The Institute of Civil Engineers last week (27 February).

Doctoral Fellow at Loughborough University, Dr Toby Williams said: “We were absolutely blown away by the win, especially considering the quality of all the other entries. To be voted the Grand Prix is just such an incredible confirmation of what we are doing as a team. The prize is called Collaborate to Innovate, and our innovation has certainly been formed through extensive collaboration and multidisciplinary expertise; it is a collaboration that I am extremely proud to be a part of.”

Aftrak combines solar microgrids and tailored tractors to empower smallholder farmers across the sub-Saharan Africa – aiming to significantly increase crop yields and income while providing access to clean, green electricity in rural communities.

A team, including academics from Loughborough University, headed out to Malawi in June 2024 to implement the first phase of Aftrak integration within local communities.

Project lead and Lecturer in Sustainable Energy Systems at Loughborough University, Dr Jonathan Wilson said: “Time is running out for the world’s poorest communities facing climate-induced hardship. Invented, designed, manufactured and already deployed in field trials in Malawi, Aftrak has the potential to address food and energy insecurity and help 800 million African farmers, by addressing multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals. 

“Loughborough University, the Consortium for Battery Innovation (CBI) and Tiyeni’s collaboration has not only created a novel technical innovation with a world first solar tractor for deep ground preparation but has also wrapped this into a sustainable economic model. This ensures that the system can be deployed inclusively to all communities and become self-sustaining.”  

Aftrak is currently incorporating a spinout company to deploy its innovative technology across Malawi where 89% of the population lives without electricity access. It aims to contribute to World Bank goals of providing electricity to 380 million people in Africa by 2030.