Bob Kokonya

First off - thanks - what a great guy you chose to talk - I haven't seen anyone that happy for a long time.
Second - thanks for helping Africa. This is a truly inspirational project.
Third - the button to share the video gave an invalid url that gave an error 404. Here's the link that was created by your software:
http://solar-aid.org/yourdonations/2010/02/bob-kokonya.html'>http://solar-aid.org/yourdonations/2010/02/bob-kokonya.html">http://solar-aid.org/yourdonations/2010/02/bob-kokonya.html'>http://solar-aid.org/yourdonations/2010/02/bob-kokonya.html'>http://solar-aid.org/yourdonations/2010/02/bob-kokonya.html

Thank you for your kind comments, John.

We're really happy about your first two points.

And the 3rd - I'm still investigating.

Brad

What a lovely family the Kokonyas are; it really brings into sharp focus the great work you are doing.
One thing surprised me though, was that I noticed Bob said that he bought the equipment from you. This is an unusual concept for me to understand ie a charity selling its wares. Is this really the case

Hi Jim,
Thank you for your positive feedback. I’m so pleased you enjoyed watching our film. The Kokonyas are indeed a lovely family. I very much enjoyed staying with them on my recent visit to Kenya.

In answer to your question. Yes, we only sell the micro-solar lighting products and never give them away. We’re unlike like many other charities in that way. SolarAid believes that the best way to fight poverty is to create jobs and businesses for people so we set up a microfranchise (see our 'Sunnymoney Microfranchising' project). We train local entrepreneurs to sell the products and we assist them in running businesses so that they can generate a sustainable income. We believe that giving hand outs not only creates dependency but also suppresses entrepreneurial spirit therefore creating a barrier to successful, sustainable business development and, ultimately, to poverty alleviation. You could say, it’s a hand up rather than a hand out. I hope this answers your question. And thanks again for your interest and support! Anna

What a great video. It's very inspiring & encouraging to see exactly how our donations are being spent and to see that it has a direct impact on someone's life. Thanks for creating this video. Can't wait to see the next one!

This was a lovely film, but the emphasis seemed to be on celebrating the fact that the family fortunes were on the up. I'd like to see more about the benefits of having light on demand; imagine what it's like having to live in darkness or candlelight as soon as the sun goes down.

Hi Anna

Thanks for your reply to my queries, I can appreciate the logic behind your thinking.

If you have the time thern please take a look at our website :-
http://www.planetprojects.org.uk/index.html

We are a small group in Westbourne, West Sussex who have adopted various charities over the years to raise awareness and funds for them. Although we have been inactive for a while, SolarAid has inspired us to get off our lazy backsides and perhaps launch into another Planet Project.
Do you have the set-up to support this kind of activity in the UK; if so we would be interested to talk to you about possibly taking matters further
Best Regards
Jim Clarke

Hi Jim, thanks again for your comments. I shall reply to your suggestion via email, but in the meantime I have looked at your Planet Projects website and would certainly be interested in discussing this further.

I will be in touch shortly.

All the best,
Anna

Hi Jim, thanks again for your comments. I shall reply to your suggestion via email but I have looked at Planet Projects and would certainly be interested in discussing this further.

I will be in touch shortly.

All the best,
Anna

I discovered your charity through the Times Christmas Appeal 2009 together with an equally good charity, Wateraid, the previous year. I would like to see more of the money this country gives in aid to developing countries directed through Solaraid and Wateraid as this makes a material difference to the life of ordinary people instead of being diverted for other purposes. Perhaps you should together approach our government aid agencies!
It is interesting that most of the poorest countries have no shortage of sunshine and could benefit so much from Solar power and yet so little has been done. Another use for solar power is for toilets - the same poor areas of the world have no sanitation and yet toilets are available where the waste products are turned into fertiliser by solar power. I know these are more complicated and expensive than solar panels for lighting but there is such a lot that could be done. Keep up the good work.