Energy Assistance Volunteers install solar panels on school roof
The project aimed to install a basic photovoltaic power supply (lighting, computer room) for a community school for children and adolescents not attending school, in the popular neighborhood of Limete in Kinshasa.
The project was carried out in August 2014 with the help of Energy Assistance, a reference in this field and the CIFDH / D, a local association in the DRC.
The project was financed by Energy Assistance for all the electrical equipment and by the Cercle de l’Espoir – Dunia (CED) for donations of small computer equipment, school equipment, toys and clothes.
The CIFDH / D is aimed at the socio-educational and vocational reintegration of children and adolescents from disadvantaged backgrounds. The structure of the volunteer teachers exists, a basic school material as well, an enormous goodwill exists but an essential ingredient like the connection to electricity for the minimum lighting of the classrooms and the use of some computers recovered here and there Are lacking.
The objectives of this project were:
Provide basic lighting in 16 rooms (14 classrooms + 1 office + 1 clinic) to provide evening classes and allow volunteers and teachers to use these enlightened premises to prepare their classes;
- Equip some classrooms with some computers;
- Take advantage of the transport to take away for the association a little playful and didactic material
- The mission allowed the transport and installation of a complete device (10 photovoltaic panels of 135 Wp + 1 regulator + 1 inverter 12V + 6 batteries 2V to the gel).
- Three local electricians have taken over and managed this installation since August 2012.
At our departure the 14 classrooms were operational, making it possible to run this neighborhood school of about 500 students, composed of children from 6 years to young adults.
We learned from this project the importance of being able to train reliable people on site in the maintenance of electrical installations. Basic training in electricity trades is an initiative we would like to pursue in other projects.
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