Apart from South Africa and few other nations, where the rate of electrification can be as high as 20%, most of the African nations have a very low rate of electrification. Uganda rate of electrification was 11% in 2007(according to a UNDP report) and is still around 14%. In some African nations this rate is less than 5% and even less in rural areas.
Most of the populations live in remote and rural areas and hence have difficulty to access electricity. For the private sector companies this task would increase the distribution and overhead expenses as most of population is scattered. Geographically it is practically difficult to extend some of the facilities like safe drinking water, proper roads and electricity distribution to some of these rural areas.
The Public sectors and Government electrification initiatives are impaired due to several other higher priority critical issues and constrains of budget.
Africa fortunately has a favorable climate for utilization of solar technology, apart from a few exceptions. Hence promoting solar technology makes sense for most of the African countries. Encouraging solar technologies can lead to reduced burden on the side of government for overall development of the nation and can be a boon for the following sectors.
· Education sector – use of lights for studies and availability of multimedia or audio/video equipments in the rural education system becomes possible, giving increased opportunities for the growth of students.
· Economic sector- With benefited education systems, the youth of the country has better access to the internet, information on latest technologies and creative ideas enhancing the growth of the economy.
· Small scale industrial sector – Production of goods at a small scale and local level reduces the pressure on supply chain and also reduces prices of products for local people enabling them to use their savings for education and health of their families.
· Health sector – The health units in rural areas can work for longer durations with the availability of solar power and can also utilize some basic machines needed for health services enhancing the overall rural health care.
· Availability of Safe drinking water– Solar pumps and solar purification systems can make available water for drinking in rural households reducing the chances of water borne diseases which can hamper the growth of developing nations.
· Energy sector- Solar Technologies are clean, green and renewable hence reduces burden on the non-renewable sources, especially fossil fuel. The country can reduce a lot of Co2 emission with the promotion of solar cookers and solar heaters.
· Environmental sector – Use of solar energy curtails the increasing deforestation and helps to save the environment preventing degrading of landscapes which may have value for ecology and tourism.
· Communications sector – The cell phones can be charged on solar phone chargers and solar systems can help maintain internet connectivity in the most remote areas leading to better communications. The country has far better prospects with improved global communication outreach.
· Agriculture sector – use of solar technologies like solar pumps can help the process of irrigation. Solar driers can help mature coffee beans faster and also help speeding the ripening of certain fruits and vegetables. The water available with solar pumps can also help the livestock during the dry seasons and availability of lights during night hours can boost the growth of poultry industries.
· Defense sector- Maintenance of remote and secret locations becomes feasible with solar power. The use of solar powered drones and other unmanned aircrafts is an inevitable aspect of future warfare.
· We have tried to put across a few benefits. The rewards may be much greater with big Solar Power Plants supplying neighboring locations. Solar Power Plants can reduce the burden on individual capital investments and hence make solar power more affordable and feasible. Such an initiative has started in Kigali, Rwanda and could be an example for other nations.
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