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Cameroon, Botbadjang: Solar energy for an entire village
“Power and Lighting for the Poor in Cameroon” (Strom und Licht für die Armen in Kamerun) is the motto which inspired the SLAK initiative, launched by the International Solar Energy Research Centre ISC based in Constance, which aims to make ecological, sustainable solar energy accessible to the people of this developing African nation. By installing solar home systems, living standards in rural areas are markedly improved and costly dependence on fossil fuels is ended. In 2009, Centrosolar provided the initiative with 30 solar modules for the village of Botbadjang.
Power and Lighting for the Poor
Around 500 million people living in the African nations south of the Sahara have no access to public energy provision. Of the 30,000 village communities in Cameroon, only around 2,000 have access to a power connection. Kerosene, wood and paraffin are mainly used to produce energy - too costly for most people forced to live in abject poverty. This is where the Constance initiative SLAK comes into play. Thanks to their support, schools, hospitals and village communities benefit from clean, safe and above all free solar power.
A PV installation for every home
Botbadjang in the district of Ndom consists of seven small villages. 150 people live here, there is a primary school, a well – and since November 2009, a solar installation in every home, each of which supplies up to seven energy-saving lamps. Centrosolar provided the ISC with the 30 solar modules required, which have a total capacity of 5.4 kWp. As a result, the village inhabitants and their children can get together, learn and play in and in front of their houses, even after nightfall.
You can find out more about the solar village in Cameroon and the work of SLAK at: www.slak-isc.de
