adminFrom Walter Mswazie in Nyanga
RURAL communities should take a leaf from Sapambwe villagers under Chief Tangwena where the local community has established a 15 kilowatt hydro-power plant at a cost of $150,000. Addressing journalists during a Hivos-organised media tour on sustainable energy at Nyafaru Micro-Hydro power plant last Monday, village head Piripija Sapambwe said communities have the capacity to produce sustainable energy through harnessing idle water to generate power.
He said the availability of perennial rivers has seen the community, through the assistance of Practical Action Zimbabwe, filling some developmental gaps in the energy sector and protection of the environment.
The project was established in 2005 and is meant to assist in the growth of business.
“We want to thank development partners, especially Practical Action Zimbabwe, for assisting us in having this important project. Water is not a problem here as we’ve perennial rivers and it’s against this background that we saw it fit to have a mini hydro-power plant along one of the perennial rivers in our community,” said Sapambwe.
“We got the expertise and equipment from Practical Action and since 2005, we’re reaping many benefits.”
He said the establishment of the power plant has improved their accessibility to energy, which has in turn, improved their livelihood.
“All along we didn’t know that energy can be a poverty reduction tool. Since the advent of this noble project, our children are now able to study at night given that the two schools, Nyafaro Primary and Secondary, which is a boarding school, are electrified,” Sapambwe said.
He said children in the area were now exposed to technological advancement through computer lessons and access to the Internet.
“When we want our documents photocopied, we don’t need to go very far to Nyanga Town, which is about 50 kilometres away. We’ve a photocopier at both schools. Apart from lighting, we can cook using electric stoves thereby saving vegetation as we no longer cut down trees for firewood,” Sapambwe added.
Practical Action project officer, Chiedza Mazaiwara said the organisation was driven by the desire of communities to have an improved access to energy as a poverty reduction strategy and provided the community with technical and financial resources.
“We provided the community with about $150,000 to establish a micro-hydro power plant. The power plant produces 15 Kilowatts, enough to provide lighting at the schools, both primary and secondary. We were challenged by the community’s need to develop and we’re also improving community access to sustainable energy,” she said.
Mazaiwara said it was encouraging that the community had ownership of the project as school teachers and villagers joined hands in developing it.
“There is total ownership by the community. The two schools, Nyafaru primary and secondary attend to faults with other community members providing security on a voluntary basis. This shows the country in on course in its efforts towards improving access to sustainable energy as a poverty reduction strategy,” she added.
Online Reporter