Promoting Access to Clean Energy in Rural Kenyan Communities

Project title:

Promoting Access to Clean Energy in Rural Communities: A Training Programme for Women in Kenya

“The project seeks to contribute to the empowerment of women and improvement of their economic and social well-being in a rural community in Kenya.”

Researcher:

Project proposal:

Access to clean energy solutions is a significant challenge for rural off-grid communities in Kenya, particularly for women (Okatch et al., 2016). One of these challenges is addressed as finance. The Pay-as-you-go (PAYGo) solar finance model, adopted by several solar panel companies, presents an innovative solution to this problem (GOGLA, 2019). It allows users to make small payments for solar energy usage over time, eliminating the need for upfront payment. Despite the potential benefits of PAYGo solar, such as easy payment options, improved access to finance, reduced dependence on expensive fuels, and increased economic opportunities, awareness of this technology remains low within rural communities in Kenya (Kumaraswamy, 2021).

This project aims to pilot an awareness programme on the financial, economic and social benefits of using the PAYGo solar, tailored for women in Kenyan rural communities. The project will partner with Tumaini Women Kenya (TWK), a Free Methodist NGO with extensive experience in the region. TWK is committed to empowering women through education, training, microfinance initiatives and advocacy for women’s rights. TWK will support the pilot study by identifying participants, determining the best locations for the training, and perform a feasibility analysis to ensure the project’s appropriate and effective implementation.

The project will develop a one-day training session for 25 women to increase their knowledge about the benefits of using PAYGo solar solutions. The training programme’s impact will be evaluated through pre- and post-training surveys. The project’s findings will be disseminated through academic journals, conferences, workshops, and local partners, aiming to inform future initiatives focused on increasing access to clean energy solutions in rural Kenya. By increasing awareness on the financial, economic, and social benefits of PAYGo solar and providing gender-specific training, project seeks to contribute to the empowerment of women and improvement of their economic and social well-being in a rural community in Kenya.

Photo by Damien Patkowski on Unsplash

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