ENERGY FOR THE POOR

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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
When energy is in short supply   The radio
alarm-clock didnt go off this morning, no light
in the bathroom, the coffee machine isnt working
power failure. In Germany an annoying but rare
occurrence. For two billion people in some other
parts of the world an everyday problem, as they
simply have no access to electricity. Apart from
the impact on individuals, the wider consequences
of energy shortfalls can be disastrous Without
electricity, health centres cannot provide proper
medical care for the population, schoolrooms
remain unlit, machinery in small artisanal
workshops lies idle, and there is no contact to
the outside world because the radio, television
and telephone dont work without electricity.
Cooking, heating, transporting goods and people
impossible without oil or fuelwood as a source of
energy. Energy is crucial to development. If we
want to combat poverty on a sustainable basis,
poor population groups must have access to
energy. In the geopolitical context, energy
sources, especially oil, are at the root of
recurring political conflicts and crises. Some
developing countries export energy, while many
industrialised countries consume more energy than
they themselves produce. This dependence on
imports can trigger international and national
conflicts and wars the Iraq conflict is just
one of many examples.
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
The growing demand for energy Energy
consumption levels vary greatly throughout the
world. The industrialised countries, where only a
quarter of the world population live, consume
almost three quarters of all energy. A large part
of their energy requirements are met by burning
fossil fuels coal, oil and natural gas. This
releases carbon dioxide, which is responsible for
the greenhouse effect. Since the mid-60s, global
CO2 emissions have more than doubled as a direct
result of meeting energy needs, and
industrialised countries bear most of the
responsibility. Each US citizen produces roughly
twice as much CO2 as the average German and
twenty times as much as the average Indian.
  According to current forecasts, the worlds
energy requirement could as much as double over
the next 25 years. The major part of this
enormous increase will be in developing
countries, in particular in threshold countries
in Latin America and South-East Asia, as well as
in China and India. The reasons for the
significant increase in energy requirements there
are population growth and the need to catch up
in the areas of economic and social development.
   
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
The threat of climate change If developing
countries are to find their way out of poverty,
they will have no option in future but to consume
more energy. At the same time, this must not be
allowed to exacerbate the threat of impending
climate change.   Climate researchers at the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
believe that average temperatures could rise by
between 1.4 oC and 5.8 oC by the year 2100. The
consequences would be dramatic expanding desert
regions, drought, storms and catastrophic floods.
Global poverty would become more acute as such
changes hit people in developing countries
hardest. On the one hand, they depend to a large
extent on agriculture for their livelihoods, and
on the other, natural disasters destroy at a
stroke hard-won development gains that took
decades to achieve. Researchers also fear that
greenhouse gases will impair the filter function
of the air layers in the atmosphere and lead to
an increased incidence of illness.   To save
future generations from having to suffer
preventable disasters and illnesses, there is no
alternative the industrialised nations have to
make massive cuts in their CO2 emissions.  
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
Energy is scarce It is not just the threat of
climate change which makes a U-turn in energy
policies an urgent requirement. A fundamental
reorientation is indispensable also because
worldwide energy resources in terms of fossil
fuels such as coal, gas and oil are of course
limited. Independent studies have shown that on
the basis of current rates of output, global oil
reserves would last around 40 years, natural gas
reserves c. 65 years, and coal deposits some 200
years. Embarking on renewable energy and energy
saving this is the double strategy to cope with
diminishing energy reserves and the growing
demand for energy without having to burden the
environment even more.   Improving building
insulation, using energy-saving light bulbs, and
reducing stand-by energy consumption of
electrical equipment this is what people in our
country can do to save energy. In developing
countries, energy efficiency could be increased
substantially, e.g. by using improved stoves and
jikos which need up to two-thirds less energy in
the cooking process, or making sure that motors
are serviced well, and tuned to run as
economically as possible. The building sector,
too, holds considerable potential for savings
while the burning of bricks, for example,
requires huge amounts of firewood, using earth as
a building material requires virtually no energy
except human muscle power.    
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
Energy in abundance While reserves of fossil
fuels, such as coal, oil and natural gas are
limited, renewable energies biomass, wind
power, hydropower and solar power are
inexhaustible. As yet, renewable energies supply
only a small portion of Germanys energy
requirements and account for around one tenth of
the electricity generated. Here, developing
countries can show industrialised nations the
way. A large proportion of the energy requirement
in these nations is met through renewables. Due
to their particular geographical features, for
example high levels of solar radiation, volcanic
zones with great geothermal potential, or a
climate that sustains rapid plant growth, many
developing countries are ideally placed to
exploit renewable forms of energy.   Deserts, no
matter how remote, have sunshine in abundance.
Perfect conditions then for generating
electricity. At first sight this would seem to
make sense. But photovoltaics, although
unquestionably the most popular form of renewable
energy, are not a substitute for being hooked up
to the grid. Solar cells yield only small
quantities of energy, sufficient to power lights
but not the machines with which people could earn
incomes and work their way out of poverty.    
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
 
Energy from wind and water In developing
countries, water is the most important and
cost-effective renewable used in power
generation. In eleven African nations, hydropower
accounts for over 96 of all electricity
generated in South America this figure varies
between 40 and 100 depending on the region.
There is still considerable potential for
increasing the use of hydropower on all
continents. One enormous drawback, however, is
that the construction of large dams is linked to
a variety of social and environmental problems.
To cite just one example, between 40 and 80
million people have been displaced or resettled
due to the construction of artificial lakes. But
dams are not always necessary. By taking
advantage of natural geological conditions,
electricity can be generated using hydropower
without the need for major landscape changes. And
small local hydropower stations are perfectly
capable of providing a reliable and
environmentally sound electricity supply in rural
areas. There is considerable scope for expanding
hydropower capacity in all parts of the world. To
date, only around one quarter of the technically
and economically viable potential has been
tapped.   From the global perspective, wind
energy shows great promise, especially for
generating electricity and powering pump-driven
water supply systems. Wind power is of course
feasible only in areas with reliable winds, such
as coastal and mountain regions.
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
Biomass and geothermal energy In the form of
fuelwood, charcoal or organic waste such as cow
dung, biomass still delivers around 80 of all
household energy in developing countries.
However, its overuse can cause considerable
problems excessive logging leads to soil erosion
and falling groundwater tables, and cooking in
rooms without smoke outlets gives rise to chronic
bronchial disorders. In the future, biomass will
continue to be the main source of energy for the
poor. But the use of biomass must go hand in hand
with sustainable forestry practices, increased
fuel efficiency achieved by burning dried wood,
smoke extractors/outlets, and the increasing use
of agricultural waste. By fermenting waste to
produce biogas we can recover considerable
amounts of energy. Another promising source of
biomass energy is vegetable oil, which can be
used for both lighting and fuel. However, this
must not be to the detriment of small farmers and
the cultivation of staple crops.   The earths
core is exceedingly hot, with temperatures of
between 4,500 oC and 6,500 oC. And this heat
energy can be harnessed, especially in areas
where the geothermal energy sources are close to
the earths surface, for example in the East
African rift valley, in Central America or in the
Pacific region. Geothermal energy is the third
largest source of clean electrical power in the
world today.  
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
Energy What MISEREOR demands and what it
promotes Under the motto Sustainable Germany,
MISEREOR has for years been calling on
industrialised nations like Germany to initiate a
radical change of direction on energy policy. To
give the countries of the South a fair chance of
development, the industrialised nations must make
sizeable cuts in their energy consumption and
greatly expand the use of renewables. At the same
time, in the countries of the South, MISEREOR is
pressing for fair access to energy for the poor.
After all, energy is indispensable to development
and in the fight against poverty. For the poor,
energy must be affordable and accessible, and at
the same time it should not impact negatively on
the environment.   Promoting renewable energies
and energy supply is an integral part of many of
MISEREORs projects. MISEREOR also supports
energy projects in which power from the sun,
water and biomass is harnessed specifically with
poverty reduction and energy-efficient building
in mind. Many projects focus more on setting up
distribution networks and supporting the poor in
forming their own organisations than on the
purely technical aspects. It is most of all the
poor rural population and urban slum-dwellers who
are denied access to energy. The first step is
often to encourage these groups to assert their
rights.  
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
The next step in many cases is to initiate civil
society dialogue in order to explore how the
state, private power utilities and the poor
themselves can contribute to improving their
access to energy. But in poor regions, the
economics are difficult it is hard to recoup
high investment costs when purchasing power is
limited and profit margins are meagre. The poor
are granted access to the electricity grid only
when the power utilities are sure that
electricity charges will be paid. One payment
system which was developed in South Africa and
has been the subject of international discussion
is the pre-paid card. It will be necessary to
find appropriate forms of payment corresponding
to the financial resources of the poor, while
providing security for the power utilities.
  Educational measures too are a core component
of energy supply projects promoted by MISEREOR
technicians are trained so that the energy supply
systems in the future can be maintained and
repaired by local experts, and social workers
upgraded so that they can support the poor in
claiming their right to energy. The Stewardship
of Creation and environmental awareness-raising
are important aspects of youth and adult
education activities.   The following project
examples illustrate how MISEREOR and its partner
organisations help the poor gain access to
energy.  
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
Haiti Reafforestation instead of solar cookers
soil protection through agricultural extension
services Haiti is one of the worlds poorest
countries. Over half of the population earn their
living as small farmers in mountain villages,
where fuelwood and charcoal provide over 70 of
their energy needs. Forest stands are decimated
by uncontrolled logging, and the consequences are
disastrous rainwater washes away the fertile
humus layer and with it the farmers livelihoods.
  Despite a variety of promotional programmes,
solar energy has not managed to replace fuelwood
for cooking purposes solar cookers are too
expensive, they are of limited use in the
mornings and evenings the main mealtimes, and
they are unsuited for the preparation of many
staple foods. So traditional cooking stoves have
to stay. But how can the farmers get fuelwood
without destroying the environment? Working
together with the local population, MISEREORs
partner organisations came up with a solution
the farmers plant tree gardens on terraces.
Around their small fields, on which they grow
manioc, maize and beans, the farmers now plant
fruit trees and trees that yield animal feed,
firewood and wood for building. The trees prevent
erosion and enhance soil fertility. The farmers
can increase their yields and grow a greater
variety of crops they improve their diets and
earn money by selling their produce and they
are protecting the environment.
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
Indonesia Wastewater treatment combined with
biogas production St. Antonius Hospital in
Ampenan had to solve a pressing problem how to
treat the 20 cubic metres of wastewater produced
daily by 150 staff and patients? The existing
catch pit was too small, and untreated wastewater
sometimes even managed to enter the water supply
and was used for washing or for drinking. The
unhygienic water supply was responsible for
spreading disease. A new wastewater treatment
plant was needed, and it had to satisfy a number
of requirements. Firstly, it had to meet
national standards. It also had to be suitable
for operation by local staff. It had to function
without an external energy supply and mechanical
parts. And finally, it should not be troublesome
in terms of odour, nor should it attract flies
and mosquitoes.   The best option was found to be
an anaerobic wastewater treatment system. And
this offers an additional advantage the
wastewater fermentation process in biodigestors
releases energy in the form of biogas. This can
be collected and used for heating water and for
cooking. The fermented, odourless and germ-free
solid residue is a high-quality fertiliser the
treated wastewater can be used for
irrigation. With MISEREORs support, plants
similar to the one in St. Antonius Hospital have
been built for other Indonesian hospitals and for
hospitals and boarding schools in Africa.
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
Democratic Republic of Congo Electricity supply
for a poor quarter in Kinshasa Clean electricity
generated by hydropower is indeed available in
the Democratic Republic of Congo - but not
everywhere. Many poor suburbs in the capital
Kinshasa are woefully undersupplied or not
connected to the electricity grid at all.   In
2002, after many years of tough negotiations with
the state power utility SNEL, the ecumenical
self-help initiative Entraide oecuménique de
développement succeeded in getting the
Mbanza-Lemba quarter hooked up to the grid. SNEL
provided the underground cable, the transformer
and the electricity meters, while the local
inhabitants themselves did all the earth-moving
work. MISEREOR covered the costs of installation
materials, connecting cables, technicians wages
and transport.   The power supply has decisively
improved quality of life in the area. Hundreds of
households now have light, and small companies
can operate machinery, such as maize mills,
planing and welding machines. Children born at
night no longer come into the world by the light
of petroleum lamps. And even the sports ground,
which is a very important social meeting place,
is now lit up in the evenings.
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ENERGY FOR THE POOR
MISEREOR The poor first MISEREOR is the German
Catholic Bishops Organisation for Development
Cooperation, a charity and non-governmental
organisation (NGO) through which people in
Germany can stand up for justice and solidarity
with the oppressed and poor in Africa, Asia and
Latin America. Through projects, MISEREOR
supports and promotes initiatives conceived and
shaped by its partners in the South, irrespective
of nationality, religion and sex. Within Germany
itself, MISEREOR is mandated by the Catholic
Church to draw attention to the global causes and
structures of poverty and to fight them by means
of educational work, information and awareness
campaigns, and political lobbying.   Please
contact us if you would like to         
support our campaign work          initiate a
project yourself          receive more
information          make a donation in
support of our work.
Contacts    Thomas Gerhards Herbert
Mathissen Steffen Ulrich koettgen_at_misereor.
de mathiss_at_misereor.de
ulrich_at_misereor.de   Bischöfliches Hilfswerk
MISEREOR e.V. Mozartstr. 9 52064 Aachen Germany
Phone [phone] www.misereor.org   Authors
of the German text MISEREOR Project Group on
access to energy for the poor Editing of the
german text Bergmoser Höller Agentur, Julia
Brombach Translation J Q Phillips,
Frankfurt/Main / MISEREOR Sprachendienst Eb
11/05 Picture credits MISEREOR