Promoting gender equality through parabolic solar cooker

Lazarus Sauti

Poor and marginalised people in rural Zimbabwe depend on wood, cow dung, crop residue and charcoal for basic energy needs like heating and cooking, thanks to energy poverty, which takes a significant toll on women and girls as they are the primary energy producers for the household.

“Without access to clean, safe, efficient and affordable energy sources, women in rural Zimbabwe have limited opportunities for socio-economic advancement,” said Practical Action’s Gender Advisor, Tonnie Zibani, adding that energy poverty leads to drudgery, greater health risks, as well as lack of time to focus on income-generating activities.

He also says energy poverty exposes women, girls and boys to indoor air pollution.

“Indoor air pollution from the use of wood, cow dung, crop residue and charcoal is a serious health problem for women, girls and boys under the age of five and according to the World Bank, this pollution is likely to cause more than 1.5 million deaths per year,” Zibani said.

However, Practical Action, using funds that it won when it was awarded the Al Zayed Future Energy Prize in recognition of its global contribution to safe and sustainable energy, is working with organisations that deal with renewable energy in fighting energy poverty through the promotion of solar technologies in Makoni and Mutasa districts.

“Around 19 percent of rural pollution in Zimbabwe has access to electricity. In view of that, we are working with companies that deal with renewable energy, particularly solar to fight this energy poverty,” said Power for All Campaign Manager in Zimbabwe, Chiedza Mazaiwana.

Mazaiwana, who is also Practical Action’s energy advocacy officer, applauds companies like Kumusha Home Power System and Zonful Energy for offering people in Mutasa and Makoni communities with affordable solar products such as parabolic solar cookers and solar-powered pumps.

“Kumusha Home Power System and Zonful Energy are lessening the burdens, as well as unhealthy aspects of the daily lives of women and girls in most rural areas. They are providing rural communities with cheap, but quality solar products like solar-powered home systems and parabolic solar cookers,” she said.

Mazaiwana said parabolic solar cookers, which use a parabolic-shaped reflector to direct sunlight to a small area in order to generate heat for cooking, are popular with most women in Makoni and Mutasa districts.

Zvanyadza Ruzvidzo from Nemaire village, who used to travel distances of more than three kilometers to fetch firewood, testifies that the parabolic solar cooker operates at very high temperatures and is ideal for boiling food, grilling and frying.

“I used to travel long distances to fetch firewood, but I am now using a parabolic solar cooker, which not only relieved me of drudgery, but also provided me with more time to engage in productive socio-economic activities,” she said.

Senior Energy Development Officer in the Ministry of Energy and Power Development, Keith Chimbangu, says the cooker reaches high temperatures, which allow it to be used for cooking, heating, grilling and frying.

“These temperatures are considerably higher and allow the cooking times on parabolic cooker to be comparable to a conventional stove like an electrical or gas burner,” he said.

Chimbangu also said the amount of food being cooked and the way in which the heat is used is generally dictated by the size of parabolic dish.

Zonful Energy Head Business Development and Marketing, Nyasha Hwata, says the uptake of solar products like parabolic solar cookers, solar pumps, solar-powered television sets and solar-powered sprinklers in Makoni and Mutasa districts is helping women to fight some forms of gender abuse.

He also urges the government to incorporate poverty alleviation measures and gender equality principles into energy policies so as to catalyse national development, a fact supported by Acting Provincial Energy Development Officer for Manicaland Region, Stanley Mukora, who said the government is already doing that by promoting the use of renewable energy, especially solar in the country.

For Renewable Energy Association of Zimbabwe chairman, Isaiah Nyakusenda, solar technology is helping women in Makoni and Mutasa to alleviate not only energy poverty, but also time poverty.

He also urged banks to support the renewable energy sector as an effective way to cut down on the use of coal which causes greenhouse emissions.

“Banks should provide affordable funding to renewable energy companies to import affordable products. This will go a long way in cutting down on the use of coal which causes greenhouse emissions,” Nyakusenda said.

Zimbabwe set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 33 percent by 2030 and 40 percent of this target is energy-related, which means the country should effectively embrace and promote renewable energy alternatives.