Solar energy key to sustainable development

* We want to achieve the agricultural, tourism & mining (ATM) strategy of which energy is the enabler 

* With the use of solar energy we will be able to pump in water which will be used for agriculture 

* This means that people can be harvesting more than two times a year—Energy Minister Matola

By Sheminah Nkhoma, MANA

Minister of Energy, Ibrahim Matola has urged the public to adopt the use of solar energy as one way of generating electricity for agricultural production.

Speaking during the launch of ‘Putting Energy to Work’ held on Thursday at Sunbird Capital Hotel in Lilongwe, Matola said for Malawi to develop, there is need to have new strategies in the energy sector.

“We want to achieve the agricultural, tourism & mining (ATM) strategy of which energy is the enabler for all these sectors to be implemented,” he said. “With the use of solar energy we will be able to pump in water which will be used for agriculture — this means that people can be harvesting more than two times a year.”

The Minister further said there is need to review some energy policies in order to move with new technologies for them to have opportunities in the energy sector.

“Indeed, at our Ministry we need technical support — as such, we need to look into some acts which are in the policy for us to achieve the intended goals,” he said.

In her remarks, coordinator for United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in Malawi, Iris Kissiti hailed the country for launching Putting Energy to Work project, saying it will greatly contribute to the agricultural sector, especially small & medium enterprises (SMEs).

“As we know energy is a driver to economic development, so if we have productive use of energy, it means the agricultural production will be high in the country because the solar energy will generate a lot of water to use for irrigation, which will help in the economic growth,” Kissiti said.

Germany Ambassador to Malawi, Ute Konig thanked the Malawi government and all donor partners for launching such a huge project, saying that solar energy will increase in the production for agribusinesses in the country.

The project is funded by German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) together with European Union (EU).

Meanwhile, Minister Matola also visited learning event of energy access through social enterprise (EASE) project on Wednesday organized for Balaka and Dedza districts where he applauded energy officers for bridging energy gap in the country.

Matola said the government was appreciative of the project and encouraged different stakeholders to work together in order to support every community in the country to access electricity.

The Minister called upon all actors in energy sector to coordinate and partner, describing them as important to the country: “One African proverb says, ‘If you want to go faster, go alone, but if you want to go further, move with others — that is the whole essence why partnership is very important.”

An official from University of Strathclyde in Scotland, Danien Frame described the EASE project as crucial and appreciated level of engagement from the government, Ministry of Energy, district energy officers and Community Energy Malawi for making sure that communities are able to access electricity renewable energy, and solar energy. 

“To see the level of engagement from both the government and all players, including the community, is encouraging as communities have embraced the use of the potable solar products, renewable energy and many more,” he said.

Founder and Country Director for Community Energy Malawi, Edgar Bayani said through the EASE project, they have been able to demonstrate the role of renewables in meeting energy needs of the communities.

“Within this angle, we managed to develop a solar energy hub at Njobvuyalema Village in Sub Traditional Authority Chakanza specifically to power cold storage as well as irrigation farming among the communities,” he said.

According to Njobvuyalema, since the installation of the energy hub, there has been an increase of people accessing clean electricity in both Balaka and Dedza districts, and about 12 households, business places and learners are easily accessing the electricity.

The EASE project for the two districts started in 2019 with the vision of affordable and sustainable energy for Malawian communities and is being implemented by Community Energy Malawi — in partnership with the University of Strathclyde Engineering, Self Help Africa and WASHTED with support from the Scottish Government.—Reporting on EASE project by Mary Makhiringa, MANA