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Derrick studies at Nyakantingi primary school in Zambia. It’s a rural school, miles away from the electricity grid – in an area that has been badly hit by the severe drought. The land in the village is dry, and many families are struggling to put food on the table. When the sun sets, there is […]

  LONDON, 21 June: As solar panels break records for UK electricity generation in May and June, the company that has installed the biggest share of them, Solarcentury, has worked out how to use the panels to light up African homes, as well as British ones. Solarcentury does this by donating 5% of its annual profits […]

We are excited to announce that our SunnyMoney Malawi initiative has won the Energy Globe National Award! The Award recognises SunnyMoney Malawi’s creative distribution model and innovation through offering the world’s most affordable solar light, the SM100, and through pioneering pay-as-you-go (PAYG) ownership schemes for affordable solar lights; breaking down the affordability barrier for families […]

The climate crisis is here, and those who have contributed the least are feeling it the most. Zambia is currently facing the most severe droughts in decades. This drought, exacerbated by climate change and the El Niño phenomenon, has had a profound effect on the country, impacting everything from agriculture to electricity generation. With over […]

Back in 2014 SolarAid partnered with Stanford University and Acumen to conduct some research on the impact of solar lighting on education. The project focusses on Zambia and includes results from questionnaires with over 1800 students. The research aims to measure academic performance, school attendance and how primary school students progress to secondary school, as well as uncovering changes in study […]

The fundraising techniques used by some charities has come under a lot of scrutiny over the last 12 months. The storm began last summer but the problems have been bubbling away for some time. The issue hit the news again recently with a parliamentary report into the possibility of replacing the self governing body with statutory regulation. […]

Solar lights improve opportunities for girls. With savings made by families they can often afford to send more children to school and with a free and clean source of light in the evening everybody gets a chance to study, not just the boys. With Goal 5 of the Global Goals in mind we explore the […]

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About 75% of health clinics in sub- Saharan Africa lack access to reliable electricity. Mtimabii Health Clinic in Mangochi, rural Malawi was one of these. The clinic is open 24 hours and serves an area of 42,000 people, so the days are busy at Mtimabii, and as night falls, it quickly becomes pitch black. In […]

  SolarAid is extremely proud to have launched ‘the world’s most affordable solar light’. After years in development, this little light, called the SM100, is now being distributed across Africa via our social enterprise, SunnyMoney. The SM100, developed for SolarAid in conjunction with Yingli Solar and UK industrial design firm inventid, incorporates feedback collected from SolarAid’s decade […]