UNHCR approves budget for the manufacture and introduction of 100 solar cookers in Nyarugusu Refugee Camp / Tanzania
Due to the positive test results in 4 refugee families, the UNHCR has approved the funds for the solar cooker project. 100 on-site built solar cookers will be distributed to selected families in the refugee camp and tested for half a year. The partner organization Redeso (http://www.redeso.org) will be responsible for project support.
⇒Nyarugusu Tanzania 12-2019 E
Solar cookers for refugee camp Nyarugusu West Tanzania
Our member Klaus Strasser (former “weltwärts” – volunteer from EG Solar in Namibia, 2009) is currently working for UNHCR in Nyarugusu / Kigoma Region / Tanzania, a refugee camp that has existed since 1996 and has taken in slightly more than 153,000 refugees from DR Congo and Burundi . His task is to develop a sustainable energy concept for the UNHCR in order to replace diesel generators. The second politically very important topic is cooking energy.
Firewood is 99% the energy source for cooking. This results in deforestation of around 6900 ha per year in Tanzania. This in turn results in an enormous budget for planting trees. In addition to the ecological and financial difficulties, gender and security problems are extreme.
EG Solar has now sent 4 SK14 solar cookers by post via Dar es Salaam to Nyarugusu, 800 km away, as a sample cooker. Tax-free import has been successfully achieved through UNHCR. Klaus is about to introduce solar cooking there and test the SK14 in a pilot project.