More solar lamps delivered to Namowa. Demand far exceeded the previous supply. More lamps mean more charging revenue for the village.

Responding to local demand, we deployed another 46 LED lanterns to Namowa. Residents use them at night to facilitate cooking, eating, and studying at home. They hold a charge for about 4 days, at which point recipients pay to have them recharged at the solar charger (pictured in the background). Money collected from recharging is set aside for future village projects.

Contractors installed this strong hybrid inverter. While the first phase of this project is complete, the community has requested the purchase of more LED bulbs. Community members use the bulbs for lighting at night and pay on a weekly basis to recharge them at the solar station. This generates recurring revenue for the community development fund.

At long last, this project is nearly done. After contracting with a UK-based solar company for the design and installation of the solar station, we learned earlier this year that the company would not be able to uphold its end of the agreement. Thankfully, the company immediately refunded our payment in full. After several weeks of looking for a replacement contractor in Malawi, we found a reputable company that recently installed the solar station. Its solar array is located in the open, away from buildings and trees. Wiring runs from the array to a nearby under-5 clinic previously funded by Village X, where all of the valuable electronics are housed for safekeeping. This is our very first solar project! It will inform our solar stations to come. Thank you for believing in our pivot to solar-powered community development and sorry for the delays associated with this first project.  We believe that we have found a reliable contractor and look forward to installing several more solar stations!