A no brainer sales proposition

Following on from my last entry, I'd like to tell two tales of solar from my visit to Malawi. The first tale concerns the power of the "sales proposition" in the thing we have set up. The selling of solar-power for lanterns is close to a no brainer. Our folks on the ground have learned that the key trick is to convert kerosene lanterns.

The reason is that many people have them already, and it's easy to switch. You simply wire up a solar charger, fashion a plastic cylinder with LED lights to drop into the column of the lantern, put the batteries inside the cylinder, and off you go. The fact that nobody in Malawi had been able to buy any kerosene for two months before I arrived kind of helps the case, as does the soaring price even when it is available.

A solar entrepreneur with her solar lantern and panel.

The second tale is related: the number of local organisations and people that can benefit from this. In Mzuzu, our local coordinator Fiskani and our two volunteers lined up a roomful or representatives from small organisations able to make and/or sell solar chargers.

One is a Catholic organisation already teaching handicrafts to people to help them lift themselves out of poverty. Their carpentry workshop currently makes housings for our solar chargers, in which rechargeable batteries can be housed. It's a small step for them to wire up the solar cells too.

Another, called the Centre of Appropriate Techology, has already built a hut with our funding where a production line is up and running. A half dozen or so trained locals turn them out and a first embryonic sales force is out in the markets selling .....easily.

Volunteer Carl and CAT Director Grant, outside the Centre for Appropriate Technology in Mzuzu.

More in my next blog entry.

Jeremy