In pursuit of Sub-Project 3, the teams effort is centered on ensuring adaptability and optimization of renewable energy technologies (solar energy, biogas and briquettes) for use in rural and peri-urban communities. Solar energy will be promoted mostly for lighting, water heating, powering of simple machines and electrical appliances, and clean drying of agricultural produce. Biogas will be developed for farmer communities and homesteads with animals to be used for cooking. Biomass will be used for making briquettes with targeted use in peri-urban areas and concentrated settlements such as refugee camps and small towns. Through collaborations with organisations such as Solar Now and Stichting Nederlandse Vrijwilligers (SNV), the project will assess the socio-economic, implications of the current technologies in order to optimise them for uptake by female-headed households and the peri-urban poor.
A renewable energy research laboratory will be established and equipped to test and evaluate the energy content of the available energy sources and the energy conversion efficiency of the different energy technologies. Research will be conducted by PhD and Masters students to understand human behavior so as to reduce the barriers to new energy technology uptake. Women and youth will be trained on home-based briquette making techniques and biogas digester designs and maintenance. Off-grid solar systems will also be designed for concentrated communities and institutions. The generated knowledge will help in developing mechanisms to improve and encourage energy technology uptake. Dissemination of findings through exhibitions and demonstration workshops will scale up the adoption.
After the dissemination, a network of community champions will be commissioned in selected locations to enhance uptake and influencing mind-set and attitude change from the use of biomass which is not environmentally friendly, labour intensive and time consuming. Evidence based quality research will inform policy decisions at local and national levels to address societal energy problems. Community members, especially women, will be trained in the development and use of these technologies since they are the ones mostly affected by poor energy access. Based on these findings, affordable and environmentally friendly innovative energy conversion technologies will be adapted and optimised to the local context.
