Youth embrace solar energy to spur their businesses

Uganda is endowed with a wide variety of natural energy resources like biomass, water and compost, as well as favourable conditions for solar, wind and geothermal power generation.

Considering all the energy sources in the country, hydropower and biomass are the ones that currently contribute most of the population’s energy demands.

According to a report compiled by Deustch Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) under the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency programme (PREEEP) which is being implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development, it is stated that while over 90% of all the energy consumed in the country is derived from biomass, little is done to replace the supply once it has been used.

Furthermore, although the country has a low rate of electrification at 15%, the electricity that is generated is often used wastefully, hence aggravating the already insufficient supply.
This situation has caused Uganda to be one of the world’s lowest energy consumers, with the low consumption being attributed mainly to the largely underdeveloped state of the energy sector.

But conditions in the Ugandan energy sector are more conducive to the use of renewable resources and steps have been taken to encourage greater efficiency of energy consumption.

The programme which is aimed at Promoting use of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency supports the Ugandan Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development in promoting the sustainable use of energy for social and economic empowerment, while increasing access to renewable energy and promoting the efficient use of existing supplies.

PREEEP carries out capacity building measures for the ministry as a contribution to improved policies, budget planning, monitoring and evaluation.

Uganda’s State minister for Energy Simon D'Ujanga explains that the programme is looking at establishing energy focal points in the district of Moyo where micro energy resource using sufficient water source to generate electricity to the communities is being implemented. This has being going on for two years.

Another project is being implemented in Kabunyata village in Luwero district where solar panels have been installed to provide communities with lighting as well as installation of a mobile network mast.

According to the minister, this was a pilot project and it is intended to be rolled out to 80 districts in the country.

It is the contention of D’Ujanga that rural communities in the country where the main grid has not been connected should embrace the use of solar energy especially use of small solar lamps for lighting in homes.

To him, the ministry wants to ensure that more people are connected to the main grid. Today, about 26% of the population is connected to the main grid and by the year 2030, all Ugandans should be in position to enjoy electricity.

“It is a joint effort and we are working in collaboration with development partners like GIZ to ensure that the rural communities in the country are able to use alternative energy sources such as use of solar, wind generated energy and others and by the year 2030 we want the use of hydroelectricity to reach all the people but in case there are challenges coming up we shall provide alternative energy source like micro energy using sufficient water bodies,” D’Ujnaga explained.

The programme being implemented by GIZ works on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), but also receives funds from the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB). Interventions on behalf of BMUB are designed to promote climate change mitigation strategies by both public and private actors.

As the ministry is trying to ensure that communities have access to various energy resources, individuals are doing the same by running their entrepreneurs like operating hair saloon using solar energy and use of generators for processing agricultural produce.

One such a group are youth from Northern Uganda in the district of Kole who are operating saloons, burning music using computer and phone charging using solar energy and below is their personal experience.

Salon owner
My name is Tonny Okello Japser aged 26 years old and I am resident of Olil village Bala County in Kole district.

I am a farmer growing maize and sunflower as cash crop in our family land situated in Olil village. I grow these crops mainly for commercial purposes.

I realized that the income from farming is not sufficient and in 2010, I venture in saloon business to get an alternative income.

By the time I started , my salon namely Bamboo Nest Classic, there were only two salons in the entire trading centre and yet there was a lot of demand for barber service.

I remember by then I was operating my salon using a small petrol generator but it was expensive purchasing petrol.

I decided to save money from my farm proceeds and purchased a solar panel in the year 2013. I spent Shs1, 355,000 in purchasing a solar panel, battery and the invertor.

I used to work in someone’s saloon in Lira town as a barber and that is how I learnt how to shave hair.

My solar system is able to power activities hair dressing and phone charging.

When I started my saloon, I used to get over 30 customers in day and I charge Shs1,000 for shaving but now since there are about 10 saloons in the centre, the competition is high although due to my good customer relations I can still attract over 25 customers in a day.

I have since trained five other youth two of whom I hire to work with me and I pay them commission which varies on the number of customers they have attended to.

Those who come to charge their phones in my salon, I charge them Shs400 and in one day I can charge over 40 phones.

For a long time there has been no power from the main grid in the village, the furthest being Akole Sub county which is about 13 km from Bala trading centre and in this village most people are using Solar as the main source of electricity.

I am a family man with two children aged four years and one and half years old and I am able to look after my family from this business coupled with about Shs350,000 I earn from my farm in a season.

From my salon business I am able to earn about Shs300, 000 in a month and Shs200, 000 from my two acre sunflower farm and 1 acre maize farm per season

I am advising the youth who are loitering in the village drinking local brew to train and form their own entrepreneurial services.

Barber
I like the way everyone in this trading centre refer to me as ‘the hard working youth’ but I am called Luis Ojok aged 28, working as hair dresser in Bamboo nest classic.

I used to process local wine which many people are interested in drinking in this village which I am still making.

This wine is processed using tea leaves, sugar and yeast which I measure in 20 liter jerrican sold at Shs30, 000, 10 litre jerrican sold at Shs15, 000 and bottles of 500 ml sold at 1,000.

I balance this business with the barber service at the salon and in a day, I am able to get a commission of Shs5, 000 from the salon and earn about Shs250, 000 from my wine business at the end of the month.

My boss was the first person to start operating saloon business using solar and we have managed to maintain our customers because on very busy days we are able to work on 40 customers.

Before getting involved into this business, I was student and I studied metal fabrication and plumbing in Bombo near Kampala but I failed to get employment the reason I came back to the village.

I have a young family with one child but I am able to look after my family therefore I encourage the youth who are jobless to go and train in wine processing centre in Ngai village which is in Oyam district.

If they can come to my processing unit I can as well train them at a fee. But salon service is a good source of income.

Technician's experience
People in this village call me Geoffrey Olwa and I am a technician by profession. I started operating electrical survives by repairing radios, computers and charging phones in 2008 in my village called Lwala using battery.

In 2012 came to Kole and purchased two solar panels at Shs490, 000 including battery and inverter. This is because each time I would hire a motorcycle man to take my battery for charging after every two days to Bala trading centre.

Now I am in position to use my solar panel for lighting, radio and computer repair as well as phone charging.

From this business I am able to pay fees for my 6 school going children as well as looking after the family. I have constructed a semi-permanent house in Ogedi village where I stay as well as purchased a motorcycle whcih I hire out.

All can say, is that people living in rural areas should not sit back to wait for electricity services from the government but venture into use of solar energy for entrepreneurial activities and they will never regret.

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