By Francis H. Murray
Njala University Mokonde campus is to host a 500 KW solar mini grid installation for electricity supply.
Officials of the ministries of energy, higher education, planning and Economic Development as well as a foreign delegation from AUDA-NEPAD (African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for African Development) completed a visit to the campus for the proposed solar construction.
AUDA-NEPAD’s delegation visited the site shortly after they had met with Sierra Leone’s Development Minister, Dr Francis Kaikai on Monday. The project is part of the agency’s sustainable energy project.
The head of the delegation, who doubles as the Head of Environmental Sustainability-AUDA NEPAD, said Sierra Leone had rich energy resources which were of immense benefit to the renewable energy project.
Mohamed Abdul Salam noted that the project had four phases” “Phase one is the identification for the installation of the solar mini grid, phase two is the implementation stage, phase three is connection to the main grid and phase four would focus on cross border with other ECOWAS countries.”
Development Secretary at the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development, Peter Sam Kpakra said the move was the outcome of a meeting held in Burkina Faso on the implementation of renewable energy for four African countries with low access to clean energy with Sierra Leone being one of the beneficiaries.
Kpakra said “this laudable project is geared towards transforming the university and the socio-economic lives of the people at the Mokonde community.”
The Vice Chancellor and Principal of Njala University, Prof. Abdullah Mansaray noted the significance of the project. He said it would help the administrative work and reduce cost on the university.
Prof. Mansaray said energy supply constituted one of their major challenges.
“The administration’s disbursement for fuel on a weekly basis is Le 100 million,” he said.
In his keynote address, Minister of Planning and Development, Dr Francis Kaikai lauded the delegates for selecting Sierra Leone among other ECOWAS countries to benefit from this project.
More than 75% of the country’s population doesn’t have access to electricity.
Kaikai said the project had come at a time when government was struggling to think about a sustainable solution to generate power for the Mokonde community.
He said the project was a relief to government.
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