The Expansion of Projet Lumière

In 2013, FVS-AMADE Burundi created an organization, Le Centre pour la Promotion de l'Entreprenariat Solidaire (CPES, The Center for the Promotion of Entrepreneurship Solidarity), with the goal of increasing the revenue of the members of its solidarity groups. In its primary project, “Projet Lumière”, the groups are given the opportunity to create collective businesses selling lamps and recharges in their communities.

The groups that choose to participate in the project after being sensitized are given trainings on how to use the machines and to run small businesses. They purchase the machines on a loan from the CPES that they are able to repay as they earn profits. Two members from each group are also hired by the group to run the actual business, but the rest of the profits go directly to the groups. The groups use the money to provide each other small business loans and to invest in school supplies for the orphans in their care.

Besides an increase in revenues, the lamps have many positive effects in their communities. In Burundi, only 3% of the population has access to electricity. Rural households often rely on energy sources like candles and kerosene that are expensive and the cause of many illnesses and fires. The lamps in this project enable children to study after dark, for less money and with none of these health risks. Furthermore, the lamps are better for the environment, because they are recharged using a pedal-powered machine that uses only human energy.

In 2014, the pilot groups each earned an average of 1,400,000 FBU (900 USD) in profits. Due to the success of the pilot and thanks to the support of UNICEF Burundi, the project will be expanded to reach an additional 16,000 households in 40 communities. With the loan repayments from these initial machines, the CPES will be able to invest in even more groups so they can also have this new source of revenue and the social benefits of the new source of energy in their communities.

For more information, here are links to a few articles on the project and the Facebook page of the CPES:

http://news.yahoo.com/lighting-rural-africa-via-power-cycling-202057255.html http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/burundi_70600.html

https://www.facebook.com/cpesfvsamadeburundi

#environment #cleanenergy #education #health #economicempowerment #smallbusiness