The gentle glow emanating off our television sets as we wind down from our long days, the bright flickering of the “open” sign that beckons us into a cafe for an early morning coffee or the flip of a switch that lights up our room so we can continue reading the most recent page turner even after the sun has set for the day.
While these might seem like insignificant aspects of our daily routines, the coursing electricity westerners consume every day is likely unfathomable to people living without electricity in developing countries.
Electricity is not only a convenience that allows people to live more comfortable lives; it is also necessary for hospitals and businesses to function after dark. With electricity, women can deliver babies more safely in hospitals and students can study in the evening at home. More children can receive life-saving vaccines that need to be refrigerated.
Access to clean and safe energy also protects people from using unsafe sources, such as burning kerosene or other unclean and often dangerous fuels.
Recently the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Electrify Africa Act, which will help provide electricity to 50 million people in Africa. The bill is awaiting passage in the Senate before it can go to the president to be signed into law.
Meanwhile, around the world people are working on clean energy solutions to bring electricity to developing countries. Finding ways to provide for those living without power has become a top priority of several governments, but also many NGO’s, non-profits and even those in the private sector.
A major deterrent from power access in African countries is restricted access to power grids because communities are widespread and often in rural or remote areas. Solar power allows homes to operate electricity without needing a power grid, making them an ideal solution to providing power to those lacking it.
The U.K.’s Department for International Development has begun working on off-grid solar solutions with Nigeria and Sierra Leone as part of the Energy Africa Campaign.
Finca International is a microfinance provider that recently announced a plan to bring power to more than 1.5 million people in Africa over the next four years. Announcing this plan at a White House Forum, Finca said it plans to finance entrepreneurs and local communities in 23 African countries as a way to light up 300,000 lives a year until at least 2019.
Nobel Prize recipient Muhammad Yunas, who developed the concept of microfinance giving hundreds of millions of people access to credit to help lift themselves them out of poverty, recently joined a global awareness campaign called SolarFUTURE.today to highlight the benefits of solar power in developing countries.
Yunus is responsible for assisting with the installation of more than one million solar home systems in Bangladesh, a nation with a per capita income of only $1,190. His team is currently installing roughly 60,000 solar home systems per month, and has set a goal to reach two million solar home systems installed within the next two years, according to PV magazine.
Energy poverty and economic poverty go hand and hand. Being able to obtain sustainable and affordable energy can dramatically improve quality of life for people. Clean power improves education opportunities, health standards and opportunities for productivity.
Access to energy is a key factor in eradicating poverty. The work being done by governments, organizations and individuals to accomplish the task of powering the world is work that also helps empower the world.
Sources: One, PV-Magazine 1, PV-Magazine 2, PV-Magazine 3
Photo: Flickr