300 Solar Schools For Rwanda

The Rwandan government has announced plans to install 300 off grid solar power systems at 300 remote schools in the country.

While we take access to electricity for granted, in Rwanda only 7% of the population is connected to mains and in rural areas, electricity availability is even lower - just 1%.

Even those who do have electricity connected pay dearly for the privilege - around 23c per kilowatt hour. With average income in the nation far lower than in Australia, the real cost in Australian dollars when considered as a proportion of income is much higher.

Rwanda's Rural Electrification program is seeking to provide access to electricity to 16% of the population by 2012 and 50 percent by 2017. Solar energy will feature heavily in the expansion, particularly in rural areas.

As a part of the program, Rwanda's government recently announced a $7.5 million project to install solar PV systems at 300 remote schools.

300 Solar Schools For Rwanda : Renewable Energy News :