The project aims to make renewable energy technologies and fuel efficient technologies available to people living in rural areas in Ethiopia. In these areas, a large percentage of the population has no access to electricity and has to rely on wood or dung for their daily energy consumption. The largest part of their energy consumption goes to cooking injera: the main ingredient of Ethiopian cuisine, something similar to a pancake, but made from local wheat (Tef) and tasting sour. 

Because the cooking process is very energy-inefficient, deforestation is a serious problem in many of these rural areas. Beside the effects on local flora and fauna, the inefficient cooking process also leads to health concerns for the (mainly) women and children living in the small houses.

Technologies

The technologies that will be available through the project are

• Fuel Saving Stoves
  • The traditional cooking method is by using three stones with a bunch of firewood in betwee and putting an injera backing plate on top. This is a very inefficient way of cooking, because most of the heat does not get to the plate. An average household of 6 persons will consume about 40 kilos of firewood within 2-3 days by cooking in this manner. By using a fuel saving stove, like for example a Mirt stove, the fuel consumption goes down at least 60%.
• Solar Cookits
  • A solar cookit is a very simple device that allows you to cook on solar power alone. Especially in countries like Ethiopia where the sunlight is abundant, this way of cooking is very useful and very environmentally friendly.
    The principle is very simple: you line a piece of cardboard with aluminium foil and make it into the shape of a hollow orange slice. In the centre of this reflective cocoon, you place a black-painted pan inside a plastic bag (to act as a greenhouse). The whole thing is put in the sunlight and about 3-4 hours later your meal is done! Enjoy!
• Solar lanterns
  • Solar lanterns are not produced in Ethiopia, but they can be imported. The benefit of using (again) solar power this way, is that indoor lighting can now be done through solar power instead of through lighting a kerosene lamp. This saves the household both money (for the kerosene) and indoor pollution.
• Solar Home Systems
  • A more extensive version of the solar lantern. With this system you can get light but also energy for other equipment, like a radio or for charging a mobile phone.
• Plant oil cookers (in applicable regions)
  • In several project areas there is plenty of castor and jatropha plantation, but no possibility to extract the oil from the seeds. The centres in these areas will be equipped with oil extraction machines and the households can buy plant oil cookers that use the oil from the seeds to cook food. That way, the household can spend less money on the purchase of fuel wood. Excess seeds can be sold to the centre to provide additional income for the household.
• Biogas installations (in applicable regions)
  • Not all areas have enough cattle for biogas, but in those areas where it's a possibility, biogas is a very good option. As part of the National Biogas Programme, the project hopes to install 200 biogas installations. They deliver energy for cooking and energy for lighting. Since the burning of gas is much cleaner than the burning of wood, the health issues are also mitigated by this technology. And after the installation, the maintenance costs are very low.

Partners

• EAEDPC: Ethiopian Alternative Energy Development and Promotion Centre
• GIZ: German International Cooperation
• SNV: Netherlands Development Organisation
• ICCO: Inter-church Organisation for Development Cooperation
• ENDA-Ethiopia: Environmental Development Action
• ORDA: Organisation for Rehabilitation and Development of Amhara
• ANCEDA^*: Arsi Nature Conservation and Environmental Development Action
• REST^*: Relief Society of Tigray
• PISDA^*: Partnership for Integrated Sustainable Development Association

^* Pending upgrade to Partner Level: currently they are Associate

Associates

• MWEBO: The Water, Mineral and Energy Resources Development Bureau of Oromiya
• FfE: Forum for Environment
• SCN: Solar Cooking Netherlands
• SEDA: Sustainable Environment and Development Action