The last mile of household LPG: what Africa's industry now wants financed
In late October 2026, the African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA) and Nigeria's Clean Cooking Forum reached the same diagnosis: clean cooking moves at the speed of the gas supply chain, and that chain has mostly been financed upstream. The last mile, from the depot to the kitchen, is becoming the priority. In Cameroon, the same week saw a new player incorporated, with an operations centre in Kribi.
Why is the industry talking about the last mile?
In a column published on 30 October 2026, Anibor Kragha, Executive Secretary of the African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA), presents LPG as the next major frontier for Africa's downstream. His figures set the scale: LPG accounts for 76% of the clean cooking access gained in sub-Saharan Africa, the region consumed 6.4 million tonnes in 2025, or 4.8 kg per person against more than 50 kg in North Africa, and demand grew 12% in a year.
His diagnosis is about the chain. Only about twenty depots on the continent hold more than 10,000 tonnes, and stocks commonly cover ten days of demand or less. His conclusion fits in one sentence: clean cooking scales at the speed of the fuel supply chain. Programmes, he adds, too often fund just the stove rather than the entire chain, which includes cylinder recirculation, small cylinders and pay-as-you-go.
The same day, in Abuja, Nigeria's Clean Cooking Forum said the same from the government side. According to Leadership (30 October 2026), the Minister of Environment, Balarabe Abbas Lawal, asked financial institutions to treat clean cooking as an investment market rather than a mere social intervention. Ewa Otu Eleri, who chairs the Nigerian Alliance for Clean Cooking, described families who moved to gas in recent years and are going back to wood when energy becomes too expensive (see our article on Nigeria).
What are the links of that last mile?
The cylinder itself, first. In Nigeria, the national recirculation programme gives each cylinder a digital identity, has existing cylinders checked at authorised requalification facilities, withdraws those that fail, and organises exchange through approved retailers (ThisDay, 29 October 2026).
The local distributor, next. On 26 October, the World Liquid Gas Association welcomed Baicou Groupe, a bulk LPG distributor based in Yopougon, Abidjan, that works on access to cylinder gas in underserved areas. Its general manager, Baikoro Bamori, says he wants to steer households towards standardised safety accessories, and announces the creation of a national LPG association in Côte d'Ivoire, with the support of the global association.
Finance, last. The Nigerian minister calls for guarantees and risk-sharing instruments. ARDA describes regional consortia in which African marketers, who know customers and inland routes, hold the last mile.
What is happening in Cameroon?
No statement on household gas came from Cameroon's industry this week, but the company register spoke. According to Business in Cameroon (29 October 2026), Dangote Oil & Gas Cameroon SA was incorporated on 28 October, with its head office in Douala and a registered operations centre in the Kribi industrial zone. Its corporate purpose runs from pipelines and depots to imports, distribution, refining and the sale of liquefied petroleum gas.
The legal notice does not say which activities will actually be pursued, nor whether there is any link with the Kribi Hydrocarbons Terminal, for which SCDP announced it intends to lay the foundation stone before the end of 2026 (SCDP, 13 October 2026, in French; see our article on storage and logistics). Both projects strengthen the upstream part: bring in more gas and store it longer. Cameroon's last mile remains that of neighbourhood depots, delivery agencies and cylinders passed from hand to hand.
What the last mile does not see yet
Recirculation, small cylinders, pay-as-you-go: these answers handle the cylinder at the moment it passes through the industry's hands. None of them says what happens in between, during the weeks the cylinder sits in the household and nobody knows how much gas is left. That is often where the return to wood described in Abuja happens: an empty cylinder one evening, no outlet open, charcoal in the meantime.
That is the question MyGaz takes on. The UltraSense sensor estimates the gas level from under the cylinder, the UConnect box sends the reading over the mobile network, and the MyGaz app shows the household the level and an estimate of the days left, so the refill is ordered before running dry. The delivery agency sees the need coming before the phone rings, and the web console gives distributors a view of demand by neighbourhood. MyGaz measures the gas level, not leaks: safety rests on compliant cylinders, licensed filling plants and the good habits set out on our gas safety page.
What to watch
ARDA's LPG Forum, co-hosted with the World Liquid Gas Association, takes place in Dar es Salaam on 24 and 25 November 2026. In Kribi, the foundation stone of SCDP's terminal is expected before the end of the year. The MyGaz pilot network is starting in Yaoundé with delivery agencies as the first link; distributors who would like to take part can write to the team from the Contact page.
Sources
allAfrica, “Who Dares Wins: LPG, the Next Frontier for Africa's Downstream”, guest column by Anibor O. Kragha (ARDA), 30 October 2026.
Leadership via allAfrica, “Nigeria Needs More Capital for Clean Cooking Transition, Minister”, 30 October 2026.
ThisDay, “SON, Government, Industry Stakeholders Launch National Cylinder Recirculation Programme”, 29 October 2026.
World Liquid Gas Association, “The WLGA welcomes Baicou Groupe as a new member”, 26 October 2026.
Business in Cameroon, “Dangote Sets Up Oil and Gas Company in Cameroon, Broadens Plans Beyond Fuel Storage”, 29 October 2026.
SCDP, “La SCDP se tourne vers Kribi” (in French), 13 October 2026.
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Nigeria: a registry for every LPG cylinder, and households going back to woodNigeria is launching a national LPG cylinder recirculation programme: each cylinder gets a digital identity, existing cylinders are checked at authorised facilities and exchange goes through approved retailers. At the same time, Nigeria's Clean Cooking Forum heard that families who moved to gas are going back to wood. Two complementary pieces of information for neighbouring Cameroon: where the cylinder is, and when it will be empty.
Gas shortage rumours: why precautionary buying creates the queueOn 29 October 2026, in Gabon, the petroleum storage company SGEPP denied a fuel and gas shortage and asked consumers to avoid precautionary buying, which creates queues by itself. Cameroon went through the same mechanism in September. In both cases, information on stocks was used to calm demand; the same information is still missing at the level of each kitchen.