Solar Home Systems have evolved from providing basic lighting to powering primary healthcare centres in rural areas, paving a path for developing countries such as Nigeria to energise lives and livelihoods. Under the Solar Power Naija Programme Nigeria plans to roll out 5 million Solar Home Systems (SHS) to energise underserved and unserved communities.
According to a report published by Africa Solar Industry Association (AFSIA), Solar Home Systems (SHS) are inextricably linked with Africa and vice versa.
These ingenious systems have changed the lives of millions of Africans, allowing them to get access to basic services and comfort even though they live in remote areas that are not served by the national grid.
In contrast to the grid electricity, SHS and their accompanying appliances function on DC (direct current) and are therefore often considered as providing sub-par electricity quality and service.
While this might have been true in the early days of SHS, significant progress has been made on improving the quality of the components and service, but also on the diversification of applications and appliances that can be connected to SHS systems.
SHS manufacturers are nowadays offering a wide spectrum of products ranging from 5 watts (W) to 1kW and providing power to a wide range of needs across the continent.
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One of the best examples of this evolution are the solutions that can be provided to healthcare facilities.
It is estimated that the continent counts around 100,000 healthcare facilities. About half of these are located in rural areas, providing primary health services which include maternity and vaccination.
Students have light to study at night. Hospitals can stay open for longer hours and preserve vaccines. Agricultural produce and products are preserved and wastage curtailed.
Rural customers in commercial and productive rural communities are usually more viable for and attract more SHS developers. This is because with economic activities, the residents of these communities would already be spending on electricity generators, kerosene, and candles, which cause environmental pollution and health hazards and are also more expensive than the electricity from the mini-grids solution.
People with expertise in SHS say these systems can actually provide the perfect solution both technically and commercially.
Complete kits including lights, vaccine fridges, medical equipment, and communication devices, all functioning on DC power can now be connected to a simple 300W SHS system and cost less than $1,000, AFSIA stated in the report.
An equivalent AC-based system, for exactly the same final use, costs between three and five times more. In times of COVID pandemic, everybody understands the importance of basic power supply in the most remote medical facilities.
Yet funds are limited and it is a challenge to equip all African medical centres in a very short time. It is the association’s hope however that decision-makers will understand that they could be equipping up to five times more facilities with the same budgets if they were to make the SHS choice for primary healthcare facilities electrification.
