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ENERGIA News Issue 3, July 1997

Letters to ENERGIA

Many people have found their way to ENERGIA and ENERGIA News; Subscribers from Africa, Asia and Latin America are increasingly joining ranks; so far we have 162 subscribers from Africa, 107 from Asia, 192 from Europe, the US and Canada and 79 from Latin America.

We welcome especially the interests from Latin America. In spite of the language barrier, the membership from this region is increasing. To further strengthen the ties with Latin America, the fifth issue of ENERGIA News will be a Special Issue on this region. We urge all those with case studies, news items or article relating to women and sustainable energy in Latin America to send us material. The deadline for the fifth issue is December 12th 1997. Or just send in descriptions of your work or your organisations so that we can include these in future Letters to ENERGIA.

I work for ETSU (UK) who are involved in national and international programmes in renewable energy. My main area of interest is in photovoltaics, although an understanding of energy issues in general is crucial to my work. In particular, I would like to understand the issues concerning women, energy and the environment in developing countries as some of my work involves planning projects for these areas.
Helen Lloyd, ETSU, Harwell, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0RA, United Kingdom; Tel. +44.1235.433373, Fax +44.1235.433355, Email Helen.Lloyd@aeat.co.uk

Daily cooking is the most energy intensive activity in Uganda. Cooking is a regular responsibility for women and children who are greatly exposed to indoor pollution within the kitchen due to lack of clean technologies. Respiratory infections are among the chief causes of mortality and morbidity in this country.
However, introduction of clean technologies like biogas for cooking, improved cook-stoves, hay boxes, etc. has not been very successful despite the above prevailing conditions. It is assumed that the involvement of the most affected group (women) has not been effectively used as tool to achieve the targeted project objectives.
Elsam Turyahabwe, senior energy officer, Department of Energy, P.O. Box 7270, Kampala, Uganda; Tel. +256.41.257863, Fax +256.41.230220

Environment and Development Association of Ghana (EDAG) is a young Ghanaian NGO which is assisting national efforts in implementing Agenda 21 in the areas of Afforestation, climate change i.e. alternative energy technology in women's enterprises through research information sharing/documentation, training workshops and education, pilot projects, networking, poverty reduction programmes, rural development, among others, by the year 2000 and beyond.
As a member of ENERGIA, EDAG hopes to network with other NGOs around the world to help promote sustainable energy technology and to ensure the empowerment of WOMEN within the framework of RIO, CAIRO ad BEIJING.
[…] I thank the editors of ENERGIA News for the excellent publications… Once again, do keep up the good work!!
Thomas G. Mensah, Coordinator EDAG, P.O. Box 935, Accra, Ghana; Telefax +233.21.226023

Akyeapim is (…) an indigenous Ghanaian NGO which represents a wide range of rural and community based grassroots and organisations that seek to promote social and economic development, (…)
Over 75% of Akyeapim's organised groups are women who are involved in gari (cassava)processing, oil extraction, local soap making (Alata Samina), fish smoking etc. to supplement their farming activities; their source of energy is fire wood and charcoal. In order to reduce the burden, women in rural communities and to promote cost effective energy for women, and (…) to reduce energy problems in rural sectors of the Ghanaian economy, Akyeapim Rural Development Association in collaboration with EDAG is promoting biogas for cooking in a pilot project, to be replicated in a large number of poor rural communities.
Sam Eduful, executive secretary for group director, Akyeapim Rural Development Association, P.O. Box 701, Accra, Ghana; Tel. +233.21.669649/662568, Fax +233.21.669394/667161

[…]I am very much interested and am very active in involving myself in the area of Women and Energy, and would like to be in touch with similar groups (active in this field -ed.) and also to receive reports and announcements of any meetings, seminars, training or publications.
G. George Raja Selvan, Tribes Welfare Association, 26 Sankar Nager, Salem 636007, Tamilnadu, India

Energy for women is a very important aspect of rural development, particularly in thickly populated and economically backward countries like India.
Fortunately, we in India have an abundance of solar energy. The public institutions and myself are working on the harnessing of solar energy for the production of agricultural edible produce through photosynthesis. City farming is a part of this activity. In the rural area we are earmarking about 1200 sq. ft. of land for production of food, fodder and fuel required for a family of three adults and two children. We believe that the production would , by and large, be sufficient for the family's needs. The experiments have been encouraging.
Dr. R.T. Doshi, “Jamunotry”, 26th Road, Bandra, Bombay 400050, India; Tel. ++6401439

Comments

• Issue 1, December 1996, International Programmes: Focus on UNIFEM, pp.6-7
  • Box 1: UNIFEM Harare, c/o Gita Welch, Takura House, 67/69 Union Avenue, Harare, Zimbabwe; Fax +263.4.704729; Regional Programme on Alternative Energy Technology in Women's Enterprises contact: Regina Amadi Officer-in-Charge UNIFEM Lagos, 11 Oyinkan Abayomi Drive, Ikoyl, Lagos, Nigeria; Fax +234.1.2690885
  • Box 2: “An overview of UNIFEM project documents is available from ESCWA” should read: “information on the Yemen Biogas project is available from ESCWA...”
• Issue 2, April 1997, Women Network at Delhi Meeting, p.5:
  A sentence is missing in the second column, second paragraph, after “…into the main Conference.” Insert: “As well, the approach was very ‘top down’, the workshop being used to encouraged women to accept and implement government schemes supporting the introduction of renewable energy technologies rather than consulting communities, especially women, on their needs.”