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  5 

 

OUT OF THE DARKNESS: BONDO MICRO-HYDRO SCHEME SET TO LIGHT UP BONDO COMMUNITY

Castina Mwale (34) wakes up at 5 am to begin her regular 8 kilometre trek to the nearest maize mill. A mother of four, Castina remembers this routine since she was a little girl growing up in Bondo in Malawi’s Mulanje district. This is part of her weekly routine to ensure her family is well fed, where she joins scores of other women and girls from villages dotted around Bondo as they trek to the maize mill located 10 kilometres from their homes.

Mulanje District is characterized by rolling hills of lush green tea plantations that surround Mount Mulanje, the highest peak in Malawi.

From the outlook, the Bondo community seems better off compared to other rural communities in Malawi, with households are mainly made up of properly structured brick houses with metal sheet roofing. Mulanje district is Malawi’s largest tea and fruit growing area and the Bondo community earn their income through growing and selling tea to the established tea estates through out-grower schemes, employment at these estates and also through selling horticultural produce which include bananas, pineapples and other fruits.

Despite this seemingly picturesque appearance of Bondo, the community has been “living in darkness” for many years, with virtually no access to electricity. Despite being only 22 kilometres away from the district capital which is powered by grid electricity supplied by the Malawi Power utility, Escom, Bondo is difficult to access mainly because of the poor roads and the mountainous terrain. This has made provision of grid electricity an expensive undertaking. Bondo is not an isolated case, but shares the same plight with other rural communities in Malawi where the national grid reaches only a small percentage of the population and does not extend to remote rural areas.

This has prompted the urgent need to explore alternative means of ensuring energy access through decentralized energy systems. It is against this background that Practical Action Southern Africa is implementing the Catalysing Modern Energy Service Delivery to Marginal Communities in Southern Africa (Regional Micro Hydro) Project. The project is being implemented in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

In Southern Africa, access to electricity in rural areas remains low (Malawi, 0.05%, Mozambique, 0.7% and Zimbabwe 19%) severely curtailing essential value addition economic activities such as agro processing and light engineering. Lack of access to modern energy services is a major obstacle to the delivery of socio-economic services such as education and health; all prioritized in the three countries’ poverty reduction strategies. Over 60% of the population in the three countries live in sparsely populated rural areas out of reach of the central electricity grid which makes it technically and economically costly to extend electricity to serve them.

In Malawi, Practical Action is partnering with MMCT in Bondo to implement small-scale micro hydro schemes to demonstrate cases for decentralized energy systems for isolated, rural communities.

 

 

 

 

Tucked wBondo disystems c

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6 

ulanje, is t, will provaccess to

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marginalis

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is

 

 

 

 

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Ben Fridaliving in dwill lift the

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during disdo (29), rec on a dared by the od that I did

at the clinise in limitend patients

7

nstruction

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n at the Bo

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ondo MHS

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equires elere unavaila

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their expeo her now f

candles toy own lightions durin

araffin lampng gone foandles.

entre. “Wehappy that

ctricity to bable most

r rural heative delive

eriences afour-year-oo light up ting wheng birth”, sh

ps for lightor eight mo

e have beet this proje

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alth centreery of heal

at the clinold daughtthe delive I came f

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ing, but theonths witho

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access to ities such a

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School is s

energy was improve

8

y out certd out duringcations tha

ms away”, h

ons have b

ents the posis (TB) seing referrning given fied person

rom the clint of 1,674 school.

the schoothe schoo

n improvedo facilitate

set to bene

will offer ed livelihoo

8 

tain proceg the nightat may arihe added.

been comp

project willscreening lred to the high rates

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l are excitol will enad pass rate

e evening c

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bring forlaboratory.district ca

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the Bondo

do commuation, and h

h this poohave to wachild birth

hin the clini

r the Bon. Bondo exapital. Imprections in

mary Schooty grid from

prospect os to have ll also havesaid Mr. J

o MHS

unity simphealthcare

or lightingait for dayland emer

ic.

do commxperiencesrovementsBondo, im

ol which sem the Bond

of having access toe improved. Marimboheadmaste

ple, yet le, it is also

g and somight. We argencies a

unity is ths high leves will includproved ch

erves Bonddo MHS ha

electricity o ICT based lighting f

o, the schoer.

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do. as

at ed for ool

ng ge

 

 

  9 

 

in the development of remote villages like Bondo. The availability of electric power will encourage smallholder farmers to set up small-scale businesses.

Vincent Gondwe, the Project Coordinator under Murea noted that the Bondo MHS is also expected to radically transform the district economically. “Bondo is a fruit growing area. Plans to bring in simple agro-processing technologies which will enable the farmers to process their crops and earn more incomes.”

The project also seeks to explore the productive use of electricity, promoting small and micro businesses to create employment and introduce income-generating activities. Bondo is Malawi’s largest producer of fruits such as mangoes, bananas and pineapples and has a huge potential for agro-processing enterprises. At the same time, there is lack of adequate land for smallholder farmers, leading to land degradation as farmers attempt to till on any open spaces available. This had dire consequences on the environment.

“This will lead to diversification of livelihoods, value addition through agro-processing and in the long run, there will be less encroachment on the forest and less pressure on the land”, said Gondwe.

A business centre has already been earmarked in Bondo, where various businesses will be established, among these, a maize mill. “This will be a great relief to women and girls here in Bondo who walk long distances carrying heavy loads to the nearest maize mill”, said the Chief for Bondo.

Gray Nkwanda, the Director of Planning for Mulanje District Council noted that access to energy identified as a priority in the village action plans. “As a Council, we oversee the development activities in Mulanje and we have been working closely with the project to ensure that the Bondo community is electrified. Whilst we have prioritized energy access for Mulanje’s rural communities, Council lacks the financial and technical capacity to implement energy access projects”, he said.

The project has actively engaged the private sector, particularly the large tea estates operating in Mulanje. Lunjeri Tea Estates has been providing technical expertise to the Bondo MHS. The tea estate is already operating two micro-hydro schemes and has seconded an engineer to work with the community. Austin Changazi, the estate’s Out-growers Manager stated that they are working with a group of small-holder farmers from Bondo who sell their tea crop to Lunjeri Estates. He said, “Access to electricity will improve the lives of these farmers, but at the same time, this will enable the estate to enhance some of the operations such as use of electronic scales and also setting up a small bank to pay the farmers who sell their tea to the estate”.

Whilst the project started in 2008, the Bondo MHS is yet to be completed. This is in stark contrast with other micro-hydro schemes in Mozambique and Zimbabwe, which have taken less than a year to be completed, at a fraction of the cost compared to Bondo MHS. With completion now at 90%, at least €300 000.00 has already be spent on the Bondo MHS. Whilst there are some challenges that were encountered by the project such as administrative issues, fuel shortages and erratic supplies of construction materials, there are some key lessons that have emerged from the project’s delayed completion of the Bondo

 

 

  10 

 

MHS. Given that the project seeks to demonstrate that micro-hydro power generation can be a sustainable motivator of local economic development and improved livelihoods standards, these lessons provide valuable insight to inform future projects of this nature.

There is need to create social contracts between the project and the communities, outlines the expectations of both parties and milestones to be achieved. This establishes buy-in from the communities and ensures a shared vision for the project and at the same time, building confidence within the communities

Traditional leaders are critical drivers of development projects. Their involvement in the project has been effective in mobilizing communities from all the Bondo villages involved in the project.

Partnering and networking with government structures on some of the project activities can assist in reducing project costs. This was absent when the project started.

Involvement of the private sector is critical. The case of Lunjeri Estates and Eastern Produce, the two large tea estates in Mulanje is a good example. Lunjeri has been running two MHS and is now providing technical support to the Bondo MHS. This is contributing significantly to the scheme’s sustainability.

Project technical capacity building initiatives should be targeted at individuals or organisations who are expect to add value to the project activities. The focus should be on building local capacities and reduce over reliance on external expertise. Need to involve academic institutions, for example, the Polytechnic which has an engineering department, where students can be exposed to MHS and be trained on fabricating turbines.

Critical to involve other relevant stakeholders (district councils; water, environmental management and energy departments and rural electrification agents) from project inception and all other stages of the project. This was lacking when the project started. This is an important facet which ensures sustainability and scaling-up of the project.

Policy barriers can hamper community projects. MERA requires licence fees for the generation and distribution of electricity which can be prohibitive for community projects. There is therefore an urgent need to establish an network of civil society organisations working on energy interventions to advocate for policies that accelerate energy access for poor rural communities.

Productive use of energy, leading to the diversification of livelihoods, needs to be pursued after energy access issues have been completed. Whilst electricity access will primarily focus on the use of household applications, it is the productive uses of electricity that can increase incomes and provide development benefits to rural

 

 

  11 

 

areas. As incomes increase, rural populations are better able to afford greater levels of energy service, which can allow even greater use of renewable energy.

MICRO-HYDRO SCHEMES – TRANSFORMING RURAL COMMUNITIES

63 year old Mupfarinya confidently turns on the turbine valve. There is a sudden gush of water and pulleys connected to an electricity generator spring to life in unison rotation. He monitors a series of dials on an instrument panel on the wall. He watches these anxiously as the dials shift, indicating some processes happening.

In just a few minutes, the Ndiriri community is completely transformed. Street lights connected to elecricity power lines flicker on and reach full light within seconds. A few lights can be seen switching on within the households dotted around Ndiriri. Within a few minutes, a good number of households are fully lit. The silence that has prevailed throughout the day is suddenly broken by a loud radio down at the Ndiriri business centre, as the storekeeper warms up to clientele who will pass time, enjoying their favourite cold drinks as they relax from a hard day's work.

Electricity has come to Ndiriri! A year ago, this was a very different place. Ndiriri located in Mozambique’s Manica Province, resembled many other marginalised rural settlements in the southern Africa region, which do not have access to electricity.

In Southern Africa, access to electricity in rural areas remains low (Malawi, 0.05%, Mozambique, 0.7% and Zimbabwe 19%) severely curtailing essential value addition economic activities such as agro processing and light engineering. Lack of access to modern energy services is a major obstacle to the delivery of socio-economic services such as education and health; all prioritized in the three countries’ poverty reduction strategies.

Whilst governments in the region have developed ambitious energy policies and also structures to improve access to rural communities, large percentages of poor rural communities remain unconnected to national grids. For the Ndiriri community, theirs is a success story which has been a result of Practical Action’s energy project which seeks to demonstrate that decentralised renewable energy systems are a viable option for providing sustainable energy to rural communities.

Through the Catalysing Modern Energy Service Delivery to Marginal Communities in Southern Africa (Regional Micro Hydro) Project, Practical Action seeks to explore alternative means of ensuring energy access through decentralized energy systems. The project is being implemented in Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

In Mozambique, Practical Action is partnering with Kwayedza Simukai Maninca (KSM) to implement small-scale micro hydro schemes in Manica district, in Mozambique’s Manica Province.

The project aims to establish at least six micro-hydro schemes in the district.

 

 

 

 

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  13 

 

The operator runs his business to generate profits and therefore charges profitable rates. He therefore owns the generation of the electricity component of scheme, whilst the transmission equipment is owned by the community.

The project has a target of six micro-hydro schemes in Mozambique. These include;Chihururu, Chitunga, Chua, Ndiriri, Nerufundo and Ngwarai micro-hydro scheme.Three schemes have been completed so far and 3 more are under construction or being rehabilitated. The completed schemes are providing electricity and maize milling facilities to at least 300 households.

The rehabilitation of the schemes has involved removing rudimentary turbines constructed from materials such as car tyre rims and scrap metal and replacing these with professionally fabricated turbines.

GIZ Ames, a German development organisation, previously worked with these operators who used the technology to mill maize.

The Project engineer for GIZ-AMES based in Chimoio indicated that the turbines being manufactured by Practical Action were of high quality as compared to the ones that were being used by the locals in Mozambique under their project. “There is more scope of partnering and operationalsing the MOU that was signed by Practical Action and GIZ-AMES in 2009 to ensure that the Mozambmbiquan counterparts will learn more about the

20 kilometres from Ndiriri lies the Chihururu MHS, operated by 45 year old Mr I Chihururu. He has been operating the scheme since 1996. The original scheme was made up of scrap material from old cars and only provided milling services to the villages surrounding Chihururu. Following the project rehabilitation of the scheme in 2011, electricity generation was added to the maize mill and Chihururu has joined the new breed of energy entrepreneurs. The Chihururu MHS has a 27 kilowatt capacity and has an estimate of 42 households and 6 shops at the business centre electrified.

“I started operating this scheme in 1987, providing maize milling to the Chihururu community. However, the turbine that was in use and the pipes that channeled the water to the turbine did not have the capacity to efficiently run the maize mill”, he stated.

The project installed a new turbine and replaced the original pipes in 2008.

He added, “There has been a remarkable difference. The Chihururu community now has access to electricity, with 42 households and the business centre connected. The mill’s capacity has been increased and it is much faster now. I am now able to serve at least 200 people per week, charging M20 per bucket of maize”.

Still in Chua, a new MHS is under construction in targeting a total of 3564 people and business centre. The operator speaks with enthusiasm and excitement of operating the MHS. Already an entrepreneur running a shop at Chihururu business centre, one can see the determination and the vision he has for the Chua community. Significant progress has already been made within a few weeks with construction of the canal at an advanced stage.

 

 

 

 

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“There is a marked difference in the way I have been carrying out my business operations. I now have business and finance management skills that are helping me to grow my business”, said Mupfarinya.

Despite the successes that have been scored, the project has encountered some challenges.

In Ndiriri, electricity is only available at specific times of the day, from 6.00pm up to 10.30pm. “This is due to the fact that the canal that channels water into the forebay tank loses a lot of water due to leakages. As a result, we never have enough water to run the turbines on a continuous basis”, said Mupfarinya.

According to Neto, this was as a result of trying to reduce construction costs by not plastering all sides of the canal with cement. This has had an adverse effect particularly at the business centre, where the grocery owners stock perishable goods.

“We have been looking into this issue and we are going to use the revolving fund, which was specifically setup to address such issues, to repair the canal and reduce water leakages which are affecting the generation of electricity”, he said.

The tariff structure for the scheme has also been a thorny issue. All households and business enterprises connected to electricity at the Ndiriri and Chihururu schemes pay a flat rate of Mt200 (USD6.80) on a monthly basis. This rate does not take into consideration the electricity consumption rate determined by the number of appliances in use within the households and businesses.

The project has been looking at implementing a management system that ensures increased system availability, financial viability and sustainability. We are considering installing a pre-paid metering system such as the one that is being used in Zimbabwe within the Chipendeke micro hydro scheme. This will ensure that the tariffs set will create a balance between determining the appropriate level that ensures the viability of the while at the same time taking the socio-economic considerations of the users” said Neto.

Looking ahead, KSM seeks to expand the energy work to cover Manica district and also other districts like Niassa and Sussundenga.

Consolidate what has been done in Manica to scale-up to other parts of the country. Manica Province has a huge micro-hydro potential. We already have a database of over 70 potential micro-hydro sites in the district. We therefore hope to use the lessons that have been generated by the project here in Manica before we can mobilise resources and scale-up the work to other districts.