SolarAid
Barclays is supporting a four-year programme to make solar energy more accessible to community centres, schools, clinics and communal buildings in rural parts of Kenya.
The project
This £1.3m initiative, which is run by the international development charity SolarAid, aims to provide small-scale solar power, education and training opportunities for thousands of people across the country.
Access to solar power, and in turn light and electricity, can make a dramatic difference in improving education, health, safety and the potential income of people living in rural areas. With a reliable power source readily available, these communities can store vaccines, pump clean water, refrigerate food and light their homes, schools clinics and businesses.
Another important benefit for the people concerned is that solar power eliminates the need for kerosene lamps, commonly used to light homes in Kenya’s remote villages. Kerosene costs typically demand a third of an average rural Kenyan household’s income, and burning the fuel is a primary cause of respiratory illness.
SolarAid also trains communities to make simple solar devices from six-inch squares of solar glass, LEDs and rechargeable batteries. These units produce enough solar power to run lanterns and other small appliances, and provide local people with an opportunity to generate a regular income.
The SolarAid partnership programme has three key elements:
Micro solar enterprise projects
SolarAid trains local people in villages across Kenya to design, assemble and market low-cost solar systems. Typically these will generate enough electricity to power a lamp, run a radio or charge a mobile phone.
The quality of life enhancements these systems will make in rural communities are potentially enormous – SolarAid’s research reveals that while a number of households own radios and mobile phones, few can afford the batteries to keep them charged so they’re left unused.
And those dangerous kerosene lamps won’t simply be discarded. Solar technology is being used to adapt them into electric LED lights, which are more environmentally friendly and economical to run.
The majority of materials used in these solar projects are sourced locally, creating demand and supply within Kenya, which will promote employment as well as a sustainable solution to the country’s energy needs.
Solar4Schools (and Community Centres) Africa
Barclays and SolarAid aim to install 300-watt solar energy systems in 100 schools and community centres across Kenya by 2011.
Providing a reliable, renewable source of electricity will allow students, teachers and local adults to study after sundown and use computers and technical equipment.
These factors all play a vital part in improving literacy rates, school attendance and teacher retention.
Solar education
The work Barclays is supporting through the SolarAid partnership also includes educating local people, including students and schoolchildren, on how solar power and sustainable sources of energy can play a vital part in developing the Kenyan economy.
