Kanchibiya MP Urges Affordable Solar Energy For Poor Households In Zambia

By Mafken Staff Reporter

Kanchibiya Member of Parliament Sunday Chanda has noted that many households, especially in rural and peri-urban areas, are unable to afford the high upfront costs associated with solar energy installation.

While, Mr. Chanda acknowledges Government’s strides towards improving access to electricity, he has observed that over 60 percent of Zambia’s population remains off the grid, with access rates in rural areas as low as 4.4 percent.

The lawmaker tells Mafken News that Government must therefore take an innovative approach to solar energy by developing affordable and flexible financing models that provide poor households with access to solar energy.

Mr. Chanda has proposed that Government in partnership with private sector players can introduce a Pay-As-You-Go model, where poor households are provided with solar energy systems that they can pay for over time in small but manageable instalments.