RECAPO CBO

Distributing sustainable and affordable energy in rural Malawi
2015 SEED Africa Award; Government of Flanders
Clean Energy
Chizuma Village
Malawi

RECAPO CBO approaches households in Chimutu, rural Malawi with solar home systems, offering them Pay-As-You-Go plans. Two LED bulbs and a cell phone charger are installed for a small initial charge and a weekly activation fee in the first 20 months of use, which can be more easily afforded by households than buying a system per upfront payment.

The enterprise also offers seminars on renewable energy and educates on the dangers and environmental impacts of kerosene lamps, candles and battery-powered torches.

Through the adoption of a clean, renewable energy source, households and businesses will have access to two to three more hours of light and productive time. In the future, this will support better education performances, reduced risk of respiratory diseases and increased income for small businesses.

Eco-Inclusive Impacts
RECAPO CBO offers solar home lighting and electrical systems in rural Malawi, to substitute dangerous and polluting alternatives in 2,500 households and educate 5,000 families on renewable energy.
  • Supporting educational achievements by increasing study time in homes by at least two hours per day through solar lighting.
  • Educating 5,000 households on the importance of clean and safe energy.
  • Replacing dangerous and polluting lighting sources such as kerosene lamps and battery-powered torches for clean solar home systems, with a planned outreach of 2,500 households by 2016, and 12.000 households by 2018.
  • Extending possible working hours for small businesses by 3 hours per day.
  • Creating employment for installers, sales and service staff, and agents.
  • Helping families reduce expenditures and increasing disposable incomes by an average of USD5.20 per month. 

Partners

RECAPO CBO offers clean, renewable and affordable energy to residents in rural Malawi, where over 90% of the population has no access to grid-electricity. Its affordable Pay-As-You-Go model allows low-income households to exchange expensive and polluting lighting and electricity systems for solar solutions.

RECAPO Solar Systems distributes and sells Pay-As-You-Go solar home systems in rural Malawi.

Azuri Technologies supply the solar products and technology, and provide training and support.

SunSaluter supplies the low cost solar tracker that increases the performance of solar panels by 30%.