Lighting up faraway homes
A man works on a solar panel on St Martin’s Island, left. Girls take part in a training session on assembling solar accessories, organised by Grameen Shakti. Photo: Syed Zakir Hossain/sohel Parvez
Housewife Fatema Begum has mastered the art of assembling and installing solar home system accessories, independently setting up solar lampshades and mobile battery chargers.
Such technical know-how has opened a window of opportunity for her. She now generates a steady flow of income for herself.
Just a year ago, Fatema's only domain was her household. It was after she received training on renewable energy technologies from Grameen Technology Centre (GTC) that the tables turned.
Fatema now counts Tk 7 for assembling a lampshade and Tk 10 for a mobile battery charger from Grameen Shakti, an NGO that facilitates installation of a solar home system (SHS) in rural and semi-rural areas that are on the off-grid network.
Last month, Fatema's income stood at Tk 4,200, a jump from Tk 2,600 in the previous earlier.
“This opportunity has given me a new lease on life and I can earn a living by myself,” said Fatema when she was attending an advanced training workshop on repairing at GTC, located at Maona of Gazipur district, over 60 kilometres north of Dhaka.
Fatema, having merely studied till grade 10, said she brings the instruments to her home and assembles it at her leisure and free time.
“To avoid a conflict, I finish all my household chores and then I begin work on the solar instruments,” said the housewife who is in her late thirties and lives with her family in Maona, Gazipur.
Fatema is one of those rural women who have been receiving training from over 20 GTCs in the area. She aims to be a solar technician and entrepreneur, as solar home systems are expanding fast in the country.
As of June 2008, over 1,000 rural women have received training from the GTCs on marketing, installing and repairing SHSs.
Among them, 41 trained technicians are assembling solar accessories for Grameen Shakti, the leader in setting up SHSs in the rural parts of Bangladesh where the majority of the people do not have access to electricity.
The initiatives of GTC, a venture of Grameen Shakti, come in response to the government's move to encourage installation of SHSs in the off-grid rural areas to give them access to electricity.
Supported by a refinance facility, 15 NGOs such as Grameen Shakti, BRAC Foundation and Rural Services Foundation (RSF) have been installing the SHSs by providing credit support to rural people.
As of July, the total number of SHSs stood at 230,000, which generates over 12 MW of electricity, according to the state-run Infrastructure Development Company Ltd (IDCOL). By offering refinancing facilities to NGOs, IDCOL promotes installation of SHSs.
“Over 15 lack people have reaped the benefits of such initiatives, both directly and indirectly,” said SM Monirul Islam, general manager of IDCOL.
Monirul said SHSs has created about 5,000 jobs directly, regardless of jobs from indirect sources.
Nazma Begum, another housewife from that region, has installed an SHS with 85-watt power generating capacity, and says that it has helped her family light six tubes (6-watt each), charge mobile handsets and watch a black and white television.
“The SHS is a blessing for us. Now we can save kerosene expenses of about Tk 800 every month,” said Nazma.
Officials said NGOs are installing solar photovoltaic panels that have power generating capacities ranging from 30 watts to 120 watts. Of all the accessories, solar panels and tube-lights are usually imported from countries such as Singapore, India and China. Japan-based Kyocera, TATA BP Solar are the most popular solar panels used.
The remaining instruments, such as batteries and cables, are sourced from domestic manufacturers such as Rahimafrooz and Navana. Altogether, the price of a complete SHS system ranges between Tk 21,000 and Tk 70,000, stakeholders said.
IDCOL, under a donor-financed project titled 'Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Development Project', started promoting the installation of the SHSs in the off-grid rural areas since 2003.
The state-owned financial institution now wants to promote installation of a million (10 lak) SHSs by 2012, to contribute to the government's plan of meeting 5 percent of the total electricity demand by 2015 and 10 percent by 2020, through renewable energy resources including biomass, biogas and wind.
Stakeholders hope the expansion of SHSs will create demand for services such as maintenance and repairing, in the coming days.
“Grameen Shakti's efforts to train up rural women to be solar technicians cum entrepreneurs will help meet future demand of this skill to a great extent and provide a source of income,” said Abser Kamal, general manager of Grameen Shakti.
The official of IDCOL also said it plans to develop solar technicians to ensure sustainable development of solar energy systems.
“Grameen Shakti's efforts are appreciable but we plan to develop local technicians such that all stakeholders, mainly the organisations installing solar systems, endorse these technicians,” said Monirul of IDCOL.
Meanwhile, Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy, a subsidiary of Rahimafrooz, has also expanded its services to areas where concentration of such solar home systems is higher.
“We have already opened a service center in Sathkhira, with ten more coming up by this year,” said Sohel Ahmed, general manager of Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy that provides technical support to NGOs installing SHSs.
Commercial institutions, such as cellphone operators have expressed interests in installing solar system for their bases stations, the official said.
Saima, a student at the higher secondary level, also wants to set up a service centre after she completes training on repairing from Grameen Technology Centre, Maona in Gazipur.
'I have already deposited about Tk 10,000 for assembling of accessories from Grameen Shakti. The remaining money I will collect from my parents,” said Saima “I want to see my dream come true within the next six months.”
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