UNDP provides solar power for 5 FCT communities

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has provided solar-powered energy for five rural communities in Bwari Area Council in the FCT.
The benefitting communities include Tokulo, Zhiko, Sunape, Youpe and Goipe.
The gesture came under the “Expanding Access to Off-Grid Renewable Energy (Solar and Biomass) Based Sustainable Energy for All,’’ a project initiated by the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN).
Prof. Eli Bala, Director General, ECN, said the UNDP provided the fund for the project, while the commission supervised the implementation.
Bala said after a two-day inspection tour of the communities, the objective was to utilize in-situ (local) renewable energy sources to provide basic needs for the communities.
He listed those needs as lighting, cooking, heating, water pump and health care delivery.
“These rural communities are not grid-connected and even those which are grid-connected, supply is epileptic and not regular to sustain a good standard of living.
“Fortunately, these areas are endowed with some energy sources referred to as renewable energy, like the sun, wind and the biomass’’ (plant-based materials).
“They can utilise these with modern technology to enhance their standard of living. What we did in these villages in Bwari Area Council is to provide them with clean water supply from underground through solar energy,’’ Bala also said.
Under the initiative, 400 solar home systems were installed in each community to provide lighting for every household while 14 solar street lightings were also installed in each village.
Also, Primary Health centres in the five communities were not left out as solar power voltages were installed to provide electricity to run their vaccines refrigerators and provide lighting for them and each community was also provided with solar-powered water supply borehole with 10,000 litre storage tank.