SOLAR ENERGY: Power from the sun

 31/08/2020 – by Derrick Silimina

Nowadays

© stepmap.de

As chronic droughts erode Zambia’s hydropower-based energy supply, the country is turning to a more reliable renewable fuel: sunshine.

It is a natural alternative for a country that benefits from year-round sunshine. Zambia has an average of 2,000 to 3,000 hours of sunshine per year and an average irradiation of 5.5 kilowatt-hours per square meter per day.

Zambia’s shift to solar is not new but is accelerating as a result of the crisis in hydropower (also see my contribution in D+C/E+Z e-Paper 2020/05, Focus section). Zambia’s Rural Electrification Authority (REA), which is tasked with electrifying rural areas, so far has undertaken 423 solar home system projects in rural communities.

The first such project, completed in 2013, set up a solar mini-grid in Luapula province, supplying electricity to 480 households, a school, a health center, and the harbor. The REA built two more such mini-grids in 2016 in Central and Luapula provinces.

In developing solar generating capacity, Zambia is part of a pan-African trend. The African solar photovoltaic market could grow to as much as 30 gigawatts by 2030, doubling the current capacity, according to a 2019 report by the German Solar Association (BSW-Solar).

A range of outside investors is aiding Zambia’s shift to solar power. GET.Invest, for example, mobilizes investments in decentralized renewable energy projects. It is a multi-donor platform supported by the European Union, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Austria.

The World Bank’s “Scaling Solar” program also mobilizes private funding for solar generating projects. The Swedish government’s Beyond Grid Fund for Zambia cooperates with Zambian partners to increase energy access and develop energy service markets.

The shift to solar is giving rise to a related industry in solar-based appliances for homes, farms, and other businesses. Urban shops and market stalls sell a wide range of solar-powered appliances, including water pumps, radios, power-supply banks, telephone chargers, and lights.

Shopkeepers say that business is booming. “Demand for solar-related products has gone up here ever since power blackouts started,” says Andrew Chibwe, a shop owner at the Mtendere market east of Lusaka. “Given more capital to expand, I will make more money.”

The same is true in rural areas. David Chimuku, a resident of Mumbwa district, supplies solar-powered farm tools such as water pumps to farmers in central Zambia who depend on irrigation to grow vegetables. “Selling solar-powered equipment has given me an edge,” he says. “I started small but now I have opened two outlets selling various solar tools.”

The customers are equally impressed. “I cannot believe how solar energy has improved my life after years of living without electricity at my farm,” says Daniel Kandimba, 55, a farmer in the Mumbwa district, 160 kilometers west of Lusaka. He and other farmers have invested in solar-powered equipment including lighting, drilling machines, and farming implements.

Compared to the demand, the pace of building solar energy plants is modest; according to GET.Invest, only 28 % of Zambians have electricity. But the new power projects are transforming lives. “I never expected to have electricity in my house during my lifetime,” says farmer Daniel Kandimba. “I thought perhaps this would happen during my great grandchildren’s time.”

Derrick Silimina is a freelance journalist based in Lusaka. He focuses on Zambian agriculture and sustainability issues.
derricksilimina@gmail.com

FIRE HAZARDS: Up in flames

 17/08/2020 – by Derrick Silimina

Nowadays

© stepmap.de

In Lusaka’s shantytowns, ramshackle homes made of cardboard and wood are packed tightly together. Charcoal and firewood are used for both cooking and heating.

When night falls, kerosene lamps and candles provide lighting, particularly during the frequent power cuts caused by low water levels in hydropower dams (also see my contribution in D+C/E+Z e-Paper 2020/05, Focus section).

In these conditions, a moment’s inattention can cause entire neighborhoods to go up in flames. And in fact, this happens with increasing frequency. According to the Lusaka City Council, the city recorded 1,176 fire cases in 2019 compared to 1,000 in 2018. “The biggest fire hazards are in the homes of the less privileged, where fire prevention measures are very low,” says Lusaka Fire Brigade Deputy Chief Robert Banda.

According to the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), a non-profit scientific organization, up to 90 % of Zambia’s households rely on wood fuel to meet their energy needs. CIFOR’s “Forests News” portal reported earlier this year on “an unprecedented charcoal boom” in Zambia’s cities, which is depleting the country’s forests.

Environmentalists blame the government’s energy policy, which relies too heavily on hydropower that falls short of demand in times of drought. “This regime should invest in sustainable sources of electricity instead of forcing people to use hazardous fuels,” says activist Amos Nkandu.

Making matters worse are deficiencies in firefighting infrastructure. Lusaka, the capital with over 2.5 million people, has only one fire station. It was inaugurated in 1959 and still uses some obsolete firefighting equipment.

The country’s firefighters are facing an uptick in fires mainly in poor districts, where residents cannot afford solar or diesel-powered generators and rely on open fires instead. One example of many occurred in June when six members of a family – two women and four children – died when fire engulfed their home in Kabwe, the capital of Central Province. “I was on night duty and was alerted by neighbors that my house was on fire,” said the father of the deceased children. “When I arrived, I could no longer identify my kids.”

In another example earlier this year, three children received serious burns in a fire in their home in Lusaka’s Kanyama compound. The fire broke out after a 14-year-old dozed off and left a burning candle on the edges of the mattress where she and her siblings, aged three and six, were sleeping.

In the face of persistent reports of house fires, in 2017 the government bought 42 fire trucks at a cost of $ 1 million each – a controversial price that still enrages citizens. When fire trucks arrive at the scene of a fire, some citizens express their rage by throwing stones at the firefighters and the fire trucks, particularly if firefighters arrive too late to limit the loss of life and property.

For firefighter Nick Zulu, the controversy adds to the difficulty of responding to fires that may be hard to reach from the central fire station. “I love this job but our daily experience in the field puts me off sometimes,” he says.

Further reading

Forests News:
https://forestsnews.cifor.org/64586/drought-fuels-charcoal-boom-in-zambia?fnl=en

Derrick Silimina is a freelance journalist based in Lusaka. He focuses on Zambian agriculture and sustainability issues.
derricksilimina@gmail.com

FARMS: Irrigation helps to cope with climate change

 25/06/2020 – by Derrick Silimina

Opinion

Zambian farmer watering plants.

Zambia is investing in irrigation systems as a way to improve crop yields in the face of prolonged droughts and increasingly severe floods. More needs to be done to serve smallholder farms. Since Zambia, moreover, is only a minor emitter of the gases that drive global warming, other nations must assume responsibility for climate protection.

Zambia’s once-vibrant agriculture sector is falling victim to climate change. Steadily rising temperatures, prolonged droughts, and erratic rainfall are threatening crop yields and livelihoods. The trend is likely to worsen as climate change proceeds, environmental experts say.

A severe drought in the western and southern provinces during the rainy seasons in 2017 and 2018, as well as floods in the north, made more than 2.3 million Zambians dependent on food aid, according to donor organizations.

Ironically, Zambia as a whole has plenty of water. Its rivers, lakes, and underground reserves account for 40 % of southern Africa’s water resources. But the water is not always available in the right place or at the right time.

Zambia’s most cultivated crop is maize, and it is a thirsty plant. Others include cotton, soybeans, tobacco, groundnuts, and paprika. Agronomists say that irrigation boosts yields to between twice and four times the levels of rain-fed agriculture and could be an important part of the solution to a shortfall in productivity in the sector.

In view of the country’s twin water calamities – too much water in some places and too little in others – Zambia is investing in dams and irrigation systems to even out its supplies. As part of these plans, several programs are underway to bring irrigation systems to small farms and reduce their centuries-old dependence on rain.

The Agricultural Sector Investment Programme, a joint initiative of the government and the World Bank, informs farmers and investors about “climate-smart” technologies, including irrigation. The program also promotes crop diversification, commercial horticulture, and reducing post-harvest losses.

The government and outside donors are also investing in early warning communication networks to alert communities to coming natural disasters such as droughts and floods, so they can prepare.

Separately, Zambia’s National Environmental Action Plan is promoting sustainable agricultural practices. Among other measures, the government is encouraging more efficient use of water and the use of computer-based tools for mapping drought- and flood-prone areas.

Currently, irrigation systems are found mostly on large-scale commercial farms, while small-scale farmers tend to depend on increasingly unpredictable rainfalls. But under various educational and subsidized financing schemes, this is starting to change. Irrigation equipment, including drip-watering systems and solar-powered water pumps, are appearing on small farms as well.

“This equipment is in high demand among farmers, and even small-scale farmers see the value of irrigating instead of depending on rainfall,” says Kelvin Tembo, who sells irrigation equipment in Mkushi District in central Zambia.

Smallholder farmer Charity Bumba of Chongwe, east of Lusaka, agrees. She has been irrigating her winter maize crops with a combination of underground water sources and irrigation equipment for several years, as the impact of climate change has become increasingly clear. “I cannot imagine how I would earn income without irrigation,” she says. “It keeps my business running year-round.”

In Gwembe in southern Zambia, smallholder farmer Pauline Kandela is still depending on rain. On a recent Sunday morning, a downpour finally came after a prolonged dry spell. “This is encouraging after a long while,” she says. “I hope for a good harvest next year.”

Improved infrastructure will help Zambia adapt to global warming. If climate change spins out of control, however, that will simply not do. The advanced nations must do more to mitigate the risks by curbing carbon emissions. Since sub-Saharan Africa hardly emits relevant gases, its countries have not contributed much to causing the problem (see Jakkie Cilliers in Tribune section of D+C/E+Z e-Paper 2020/07).

Derrick Silimina is a freelance journalist based in Lusaka, Zambia. He focuses on Zambian agriculture and sustainability issues.
derricksilimina@gmail.com

EYE CARE: Helping Zambians to see

 13/07/2020 – by Derrick Silimina

Nowadays

© stepmap.de

Until recently, Maureen Mumba suffered from cataracts, a blurring of the lens of the eyes which, if left untreated, can cause total blindness. Mumba, a 55-year-old subsistence farmer in southern Zambia, had the disease for five years. Her increasingly cloudy vision slowed her farming work, threatening her household’s food supply.

She is one of the lucky ones, however. Thanks to a Chinese program offering free cataract surgery, Mumba received an operation that removed her cataracts. “I am so excited that my sight is fully restored,” she says.

Mumba is one of a small but growing number of Zambians benefitting from a push to fight cataracts and other eye diseases. The campaign is supported by donations from international NGOs, private health-care providers, and foreign governments, particularly the Chinese government.

Cataracts are a major cause of blindness in Zambia, particularly among the elderly. About 12 million people worldwide are blind because of cataracts, says Sightsavers, a global health-care organization that supported 355,000 cataracts operations worldwide in 2018.

In Zambia, about 75,000 people are blind because of cataracts, according to See International, a US-based eye care provider, citing the Zambian Ministry of Health data. Overall, it says, “treatable or preventable conditions account for approximately 80% of blindness cases in Zambia.”

In addition to its human cost, blindness takes a tremendous economic toll on Zambia, with an estimated total annual loss of $ 56 million. Zambians have poor access to eye care, with only 15 ophthalmologists serving over 14 million residents, See International says.

Part of the problem is the lack of public information. According to Eye for Zambia, a Dutch organization that supports eye care in Zambia, 43% of affected people are unaware of possible treatment. The country also lacks equipment and training for eye care, and high transport costs impede access to the few available eye care facilities.

The Chinese government is at the forefront of efforts to help. It funded a program called “Bright Journey” that provides free cataract surgery in Lusaka and the southern provinces. So far, China has sent 21 medical teams to Zambia, providing diagnosis and treatment of common eye diseases as well as treatment of difficult cases.

The teams also train local doctors and provide materials and equipment. “As long as cataracts affect daily life and work, surgery can be considered,” says Dr. Huang Shunde, director of the “Bright Journey” program.

The surgeons use a method called phacoemulsification and intraocular lens implantation. “In this surgery, the nucleus of lens is crushed and sucked out by ultrasound, and a foldable intraocular lens is implanted at the same time so that the object is refocused on the retina, and the patient will be able to gain vision after the operation,” Dr. Shunde says. One of the patients treated is Bright Nkamba, a 48-year-old bus driver from Lusaka. “My eyesight is now back to normal,” he says.” I am so grateful that this operation was a success.”

The Zambian government expressed thanks for the Chinese support. “It is with a deep sense of gratitude that I recognize the government of China’s dedication to the provision of quality health services to Zambia,” says Kennedy Malama, a permanent secretary at the Zambian Health Ministry.

Derrick Silimina is a freelance journalist based in Lusaka. He focuses on Zambian agriculture and sustainability issues.
derricksilimina@gmail.com

ENVIRONMENT: Financing the fight against climate change

 08/06/2020 – by Derrick Silimina

Nowadays

© stepmap.de

Climate change has brought a combination of devastating droughts and ruinous floods to Zambia, with no solution in sight.

In eastern and central parts of the country, floods caused by heavy rains have washed away houses, bridges, and roads in February this year, leaving families homeless and entire regions devastated.

In Muchinga province, four people died while trying to cross the flooded Luangwa River. In Lusaka province, many roads and bridges collapsed under the weight of floods.

Gloria Chipeta, 32, of Mambwe district in the east, says the floods left her family homeless and destroyed all her food and household goods. “I am traumatized and don’t know what to do,” she says. “How am I going to take care of my kids?”

In other parts of the country, droughts are laying fields to waste and causing food shortages. Some southern and western provinces urgently need food aid.

One of the regions hardest hit by drought is the Nalolo district in the west, home of Vice President Inonge Wina. “It is very unfortunate that even though our vice president comes from this area, little is being done to address the impacts of climate change here,” says Teddy Ilukena, a local farmer.

According to the 2019-2020 United Nations Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for Zambia, 2.3 million Zambians will need food aid before the next harvest. It says 450,000 of those people who need food immediately.

However, the Zambian government is struggling with a huge debt repayment burden, making resources scarce.

Zambia’s external debt has been on the rise in the past decade. It rose from $ 3.2 billion (€ 2.9 billion) in 2011 to $ 10.23 billion in June 2019, according to the Ministry of Finance.

The country’s domestic debt stock, meanwhile, is also soaring. It reached 60.3 billion Zambian Kwacha (€ 3.66 billion) in June 2019, compared to 15.1 billion Kwacha in 2011.

In view of his country’s debt burdens and climate crisis, President Edgar Lungu has appealed for humanitarian aid from donor countries, particularly for areas hit by floods.

“My administration is doing everything possible to rehabilitate and resettle the affected people,” Lungu said. He noted the rains are a “double-edged sword”, causing devastation for some districts but also watering crops elsewhere and filling dams that can be used for hydropower.

Not all Zambians agree that international aid is the right answer.

Kebby Mbewe, a flood victim from Lusaka province, says the government should find home-grown solutions instead of requesting aid every time floods hit. “Over 50 years after independence, we should use our own resources to respond to climate change challenges,” he says. 

The Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR), a Roman Catholic organization, agrees that local input would be helpful, and argues that the government’s disaster management and mitigation unit should fund research to find solutions for a chronic flood problem.

“As climate change reversal is not in sight, droughts and floods will continue,” says JCTR spokesman  Enock Ngoma. “The government should adequately fund the University of Zambia to design long term mitigation systems.”

Derrick Silimina is a freelance journalist based in Lusaka, Zambia. He focuses on Zambian agriculture and sustainability issues.
derricksilimina@gmail.com

POWER SHORTAGES: When the lights go out

 19/04/2020 – by Derrick Silimina

In brief

© Veeser/picture-alliance/imageBROKER

Shop owners and other businesses suffer an unreliable power supply.

When water levels in hydroelectric dams get low enough, the power utility cuts power to customers – sometimes for 20 hours per day. This has hit the economy hard across all sectors, including metal fabricators, hair salons, butchery shops, and almost everyone else.

Teddy Mugala, the owner of a butchery shop in Lusaka’s sprawling Soweto market, sees the impact immediately in his refrigerators. “My meat products go bad every time the power is shut down,” he says.

Zesco, the state-owned power company that supplies almost all the country’s electricity, publishes notices telling customers when and where to expect blackouts. In some areas, power is cut from early morning until late in the evening.

To ease the situation, the government is trying to import 330 MW from South Africa at a cost of $ 27 million.

But business owners want faster solutions. “My business depends on a constant power supply,” says David Munyinda, a metal fabricator in Kalingalinga township near Lusaka. “The power comes on at 5 am for just two hours and then goes out again. How can I work like this?”

ENERGY POLICY: Water over the dam

 16/04/2020 – by Derrick Silimina

In depth

© Dan Burton/picture-alliance/robertharding

The hydroelectric power station on Lake Tanganyika in Zambia.

Zambia is reconsidering its long-time dependence on hydropower, as chronic droughts cut production at its massive hydro dams. The country is diversifying into solar and wind instead.

At first glance, hydropower seems natural for Zambia. The country benefits from the water flows of the mighty Zambezi and Kafue Rivers, and hydropower is a clean and renewable fuel source. With this in mind, Zambia built major hydropower plants to supply nearly all its electricity needs.

But hydropower has a fatal flaw: Chronic drought lowers water levels to the point where power production is severely curtailed. Droughts in recent years have produced electricity shortages estimated at nearly one-third of Zambia’s total installed hydroelectric capacity of 2,380 megawatts.

In 2019, water levels in the Kariba dam plunged to their lowest level since 1996, falling to 10 % of usable storage. “This is probably the worst drought that has ever hit Zambia since independence” in 1964, Energy Minister Matthew Nkhuwa told parliament.

Drought caused by climate change is not the only flaw in Zambia’s energy policy, however. Chronic under-investment in hydro projects has also caused problems. Even when enough rain falls, the power supply cannot keep up with demand from the mining, manufacturing, and agriculture industries.

But the biggest problem is that Zambia is over-dependent on hydro energy, a fuel source that is subject to the unpredictability of the weather. According to the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the country draws 85 % of its power from hydro projects.

As droughts cause chronic and prolonged blackouts, Zambia is looking to reduce its dependence on hydropower by developing other renewable fuel sources, such as solar and wind. These fuel sources are as clean as hydropower and can help reduce Zambia’s dependence on rainfall for its electricity.

Solar and wind projects have another key advantage: these power plants can be smaller and more decentralized than most hydro dams and can be connected to micro-grids supplying under-served communities. That is important in Zambia, where the countryside lacks access to power. According to USAID, only four percent of the rural population in Zambia has access to electricity.

Enter private investors

The vast majority of Zambia’s power is produced and distributed by Zesco, the state-owned utility. But in an effort to diversify both its fuel sources and its financial resources, Zambia is entering agreements with corporations looking to invest in its energy sector.

For example, in 2019 the Zambezi River Authority awarded a contract to a consortium led by General Electric and Power China to build a $ 4 billion hydropower project at Batoka Gorge.

Zambia also signed an agreement with the World Banks’ International Finance Corporation (IFC) to develop two large-scale solar projects. A competitive auction through the IFC’s “Scaling Solar” program attracted bids from competing solar developers. Both solar plants started operation in 2019; according to the IFC, the projects offer the lowest solar-power prices in Africa to date.

Wind energy is relatively underdeveloped but several promising projects are underway. Last November the energy minister initiated a 200 MW wind-power project in Katete, Eastern Province. The government expects construction to start in 2021. This is the first phase of the larger Unika 1 wind project, which is to be financed by private investors.

These projects are badly needed and long overdue. Rolling power blackouts have damaged Zambia’s already fragile economy. The chronic electricity shortages have affected everyone, from individuals to small businesses and large mining corporations (see box).

Adding generating capacity from diversified supply sources could also ease a price crunch for energy consumers. As Zesco’s condition has worsened, it was forced to raise tariffs by as much as 200 % in late 2019, in part to pay for power imports from South Africa.

In the short term, rate-payers facing a combination of rolling blackouts and higher prices are upset. “My business is down due to lack of electricity,” says Lucy Mbewe, 32, operator of a hair salon in Lusaka, the capital. “The government should invest in [other] renewable energies instead of always depending on the Kariba dam for power generation, year in and year out.”

Source
USAID Zambia power Africa fact sheet:
https://www.usaid.gov/powerafrica/zambia

Derrick Silimina is a freelance journalist based in Lusaka, Zambia. He focuses on Zambian agriculture and sustainability issues.
derricksilimina@gmail.com