Kira Costanza - OnEarth Magazine, from NRDC

Solar Energy + Microfinance = SunPower Afrique

Rural West African nights are dark and quiet. In most areas there are no streetlights, no humming of air conditioners, no whirring fans nor refrigerators, no washing machines or stoves. Families and shops use kerosene lamps and candles to live and work at night, as poor electrification constrains the regions' growth and development.
A large part of the West Africa's development has been connected to solid and sustainable microfinance networks in countries such as Togo, whose population of 6.5 million people is served by 160 Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) throughout the country. MFIs are banks that give tiny loans, usually less than $500-1000, to entrepreneurs and parts of the population that are excluded from the formal financial sector. For 15 years, MFIs in Togo have stimulated significant development in local economies. These MFIs, like other critical institutions and infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and government offices, suffer ...read full post

Comments (0) | October 3, 2008