Necessities such as electricity are inaccessible to many people in developing countries, and ensuring access is a challenge. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), less than 23% of rural Liberians have access to electricity. Building long-distance transmission lines to bring electricity to outlying communities is very expensive. Also, issues such as antiquated infrastructure and under-funding in
Liberia’s electricity distribution sector have led to unreliable supply of electricity and long outages.
Access to electricity, lighting, and solar water purification systems in rural communities will fulfil several fundamental community needs.
- Education
- Clean water
- Health Care including perishable medicines
- Clean air
- Proper food preparation
In partnership with Volunteers for International Development and Aid (VIDA), Youth Crime Watch Liberia aims to solarize Liberia by providing solar-related educational programs and sustainable solutions to energy needs in Liberia.
The Solarize Liberia trip will bring dependable solar energy, and solar water purification and cooking systems to eight rural Liberian communities. The team will spend five to seven days in each community installing a solar electric system, building knowledge of and support for solar energy, and delivering three educational workshops:
1) Purifying Water with the Sun,
2) Cooking with the Sun,
3) Photovoltaic Systems and Maintenance.
The team will travel on the SolBus—a 40-foot school bus to be used for the Solarize Liberia trip. The SolBus has space for ten passengers and equipment for the eight Solarize Liberia projects including:
- Photovoltaic systems
- Sun Kings
- Sun ovens
- Sun Frost refrigerators (for communities with medical clinics)