The Organization Through it’s Foosteer Light Initiative, support poverty reduction mission by developing and delivering RE (Renewable Energy) systems to rural households and businesses in SSA(sub-sahara africa). While the focus was on pv shs, foosteer initiatives based in Nigeria also supported agro-business, biomass and gas projects.
Foosteer has a secondary mandate, that of helping connect rural
areas to the world through (solar-powered) information technology. Although registered
as an NGO, it is run, for the most
part, as a not-for-profit enterprise. The organization’s solar PV program represents its largest
business line, purchasing solar PV panels
and other systems components (i.e., batteries) from a range of foreign and
local suppliers; and assembling, selling, installing, and, where necessary,
financing them.
The Nigerian market for SHS
is considered to be relatively large. Approximately 75 percent of households do
not have accessibility to electricity, low levels of urbanization, and a very
slow political and economic reform process have made establishing a traditional
energy network (or grid) very challenging. Furthermore, the high density of the
Nigerian population means that, even in rural areas, there are significant concentrations
of potential consumers.
The first renewable energy initiative (Installation
of 650w SHS in an off-grid residential building) that foosteer implemented was a donor-led and focused on
demonstrating the functionality of the technology, FISHANDHOOKS GLOBAL NETWORK
awarded the project in 2013 the project was implemented same year, the system is
still functioning till date.
Foosteer Light Initiative tagged SUSTAINABLE ENERGY
ACCESS PROGRAMME is a project with two major components; system 1&2, Solar
Lamp Rental System (SLRS) and Solar Home System (SHS) respectively.
The Solar Lamp
Rental System SLRS, powered by community charging stations provides cleaner,
safer, better lighting. An integrated micro-processor on the lamps provides
accurate records of kerosene replacement, while the Solar Home Systems SHS can
power smaller community businesses. i.e Barber’s shop, Provision shops etc
Characteristics of target population
includes:
Off-grid populations (especially rural) households with relatively
high energy expenses and no access to grid electricity or other reliable and
affordable electricity supply sources, strong emphasis is on the “Base of the
Pyramid” (BoP) households with a daily income below USD 2, also Off-grid, rural
micro-enterprises such as village kiosks, agro-processors and community centers
that are currently dependent on diesel generation sets for electricity supply.
WHAT WE DO:
A Private Energy Provider (PEP) for off-grid areas
• Renting out SHS for fixed monthly tariffs
• Selling KWh in villages with Village Grids
• Selling light per hour/bar with portable
battery lamps
PROBLEM/OPPORTUNITY:
140 million
people in Nigeria still have no reliable access to power.
The traditional electricity grid will reach neither
half of this population.
Despite this, most of them are served
by mobile networks.
FOOSTEER INITIATIVE FOR COMMUNITY
HEALTH AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT offers Micropower
– small-scale, local energy for off-grid and underserved
communities.
Agriculture is a cornerstone of Nigeria’s economy, with
cultivation of cash crop meant to serve as a major employer approximately 32%.
Energy is an important part of modern Nigeria
agriculture, accounting for 25 percent of input costs. A lack of stable and
available energy sources is an issue, which leads farmers to rely on expensive,
polluting diesel generators as a backup source.
FOOSTEER INITIATIVE FOR COMMUNITY
HEALTH AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT provides
Solar-powered
agro-processing machinery with focus on
Sustainability through commercial viability for both the agro-allied
entrepreneur and their respective business patronage.
MISSION FOR LIGHT INITIATIVE:
Our mission is to develop
profitable business opportunities in Nigeria and in Sub-Sahara Africa while
meeting community energy and connectivity needs, effecting a Technology and Know-how Transfer particularly in
West-Africa countries by catalyzing at least US$20 million in investment for medium scale off-grid
energy projects over the next two years, which will increase access to
electricity for African enterprises and impact the lives of millions of power
users in these countries. This ambitious vision requires an elevated
partnership built around concrete commercial and developmental interests.
