Sustainble Development For All-Kenya

We require more unrestricted funding to enable innovation when scaling

and replication. We also require capacity building within the
organization to enable us grow effectively at a faster rate and improve
efficiency in our operations.

Specifically, the Elevate prize funding will be used to set up at least 2 new rural innovation centers that will be used to showcase renewable energy application in agriculture for rural small holder farmers.

Evans grew up in a mud house in a village in Kenya with no electricity

or running water. In order to study, he had to compete with my siblings
for use of kerosene lamps. Eventually, the constant exposure to the
fumes of kerosene lamps led to damage to his eyes. He went on to enroll
for Engineering degree at Jomo Kenyatta University in Kenya. At 19,
while in his first year, Evans reflected back on his childhood and while
playing with Christmas lights in his dorm room, he designed arguably
the first ever African designed solar lamp made from 50% recycled
materials. The Mwangabora solar lamps are easily assembled without
specialized tools and can be made from scrap metals and old kerosene
lanterns. Evans started off by skipping a meal each day and using part
of his college student loan. He then founded an initiative, use Solar,
Save Lives and later joined up with other young people to found a non
profit social enterprise, Sustainable Development For All-Kenya
(SDFA-Kenya).

SDFA-Kenya has a vision to empower rural communities in Africa to be self reliant, with skills and knowledge to live better lives.

There are over 600 million people in Africa without electricity.

Majority of them are women and youths in rural areas, who are
unemployed.  The project sets up youth resource centers where youths who
dropped out of school are equipped with vocational and business skills
and then use the centers to make various items, which they sell to earn a
living. In return, they also learn to make Mwangabora solar lamps from
old kerosene lamps. The lamps are distributed to women through groups,
who are then trained with micro-entrepreneurship skills and they set up
income generating ventures from funds saved from no longer needing to
purchase kerosene and eventually use the ventures as collateral to
access further financing to expand. The project is improving knowledge
and skills among youths and women, increasing employment, increasing
income, improving education and health, reducing carbon emissions and
economically empowering communities.

In short we say- SDFA can ‘turn kerosene into honey’. Our model is the only one that equips rural women with business skills and enables them to set up businesses from the money that they would have otherwise spend on kerosene, ensuring that they have more income to improve their lives but also to adopt other green technologies easily. The women set up a agribusinesses, trading stores, village microfinance, among others. For instance, some of the women we work with have used savings made for not using kerosene, after getting the Mwangabora solar lamps made by youths, to set up bee keeping business and are now packaging and selling their honey. 

  Mwangabora solar lamps are simple, require non-technical skills to make, and are made using simple tools and equipment. The lamps are made from old recycled kerosene lamps which only enables the communities learn about recycling but also helps in cleaning the environment. 

 
  With improved income and knowledge on renewable energy, the youths and women easily learn to develop and adopt improved cookstoves and biogas, which helps create an energy sustainable model that, changes livelihoods forever.

The project has several key activities which result in improved lives for communities and long term change.

• Community Engagement- this helps raise awareness about the benefits of the program.The project ensures that communities choose and participate in designing the specific activities of the project hence they feel ownership of the project.
• Setting up of youth resource/Incubation centers, training of youths and enabling them to apply skills to be self employed.The tools and equipment in the center depend on what the youths want. The project targets marginalized youths who dropped out of school They gain skills and can make various products and sell to gain income. They also learn to assemble Mwangabora solar lamps which are distributed to women.
• Enabling women to set up micro-enterprises - Distribute the solar lamps to women, train women on micro enterprise development and help them set up the small businesses. The save money initially used for kerosene through groups.The women gain skills in business development and set up sustainable income generating projects. They earn income from the projects and cal also use them as collateral to access loans to expand. The group model ensures more accountability.
•  Data collection, Monitoring and Evaluation