August 10, 2012

NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania – Thanks to the courage of six local women, life has improved drastically for the people of three small villages, a couple of hours south of Mauritania's capital Nouakchott.

Today, children can read and do their homework after sunset by solar light, women cook without having to worry about harmful fumes from an open fire, and families are enjoying better economic conditions.

The six women had volunteered in 2008 to be sent off for six months of training in India to become solar panel engineers. Hardly any of them knew how to read or write; none had ever left their villages.

Daida Mint Oumar, the women's team leader, says she thanks God that she found the strength to say yes to the training at the Barefoot College in India.

"This is the best thing that ever happened to me and to my village, it has made a big difference in our lives," she says.

Providing the Most Necessary Since the project started 5 years ago, more than 250 households in the Trarza region have been equipped with solar panels. Every participating household pays a small monthly fee that covers all expenses, including maintenance and salaries for the six women.

Panels come with lamps and cooking equipment, and constant maintenance is required. It takes an hour to install the equipment, which includes panels placed on the roofs, switches and lamps inside.

"We work every day repairing lamps, checking installments. And after five years, batteries become useless and need to be replaced," Oumar says.

Ould Seyid Bechir, president of The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) partner Bienfaisance sans frontiers (BSF) and the driving force behind the project, says he is proud of the program. The fact that the project is led and managed by women marks a success in itself, he maintains.

"This is an excellent way to strengthen women in the communities. And we know that a salary given to a woman is money given to the family; men have a tendency to spend the money on other things," Bechir notes.

Once-in-a-lifetime Journey The BSF president says the Barefoot College in Tilonia, India, was looking for volunteers to participate in a six-month training to become solar panel engineers. With the help of the LWF, a search was begun among the most vulnerable villages to find six women who would be prepared to leave their families and pursue the training program abroad.

Saleka Maissa says she could neither read nor write when she signed up.

"I had never even seen an airplane before. I had not even left my village before. But when my husband said yes, I knew I had to do it," she says.

Working together, the women overcame language barriers and their illiteracy and completed their diplomas with excellent results. Since then Maissa has been to Mali and Senegal, sharing her experiences with other women. She says she would do it all over again.

"I dream of getting an updated version of the training. There is so much new equipment." Energy Poverty Statistics indicate that just 30.5 percent of the population of sub-Saharan Africa has access to electricity, with an estimated 585 million people lacking electricity, more than two-thirds of whom live in rural areas.

Bechir has high hopes for the solar panel program. He says solar is the way of the future when it comes to providing energy and that it can be accomplished profitably. The current technology and knowledge has to be invested, not allowed to become obsolete, he adds.

The women's proficiency, as demonstrated by the solar panel program, has also caught the attention of other organizations and villages.

"My dream is to start an education center here in Mauritania. Besides giving more villages the advantages of this technology, we can sell the knowledge to other organizations and companies," Bechir says.

Kasongo Mutshaila, the LWF representative in Mauritania, says he too has high hopes for the future.

"We have an understanding with the Indian government and they have agreed to finance solar panels for another 500 households. UNICEF (the United Nations Children's Fund) has planned to install solar energy in schools and has requested the women in Trarza to do the installment."

Lutheran World Information
By LWI correspondent Thomas Ekelund, during a visit to Mauritania.