Low cost solar lights can be a good source to lighten up the homes of the marginalised people without access to the national power grid.
BRAC yesterday launched such solar products that are safe for health and can play an important role in education and agricultural activities at night.
“This initiative will help rural poor with an alternative low-cost light source to kerosene lamps and reduce the health risks related to kerosene,” said Mahabub Hossain, executive director of BRAC.
“We believe this will also contribute in meeting the growing demand of electricity in Bangladesh.”
He spoke at the launch of D.light Design solar lights organised by the Agriculture and Food Security Programme (AFSP) of BRAC, at BRAC Centre Inn in the capital.
The prices of the products range from Tk 750 to Tk 2,600, according to the development organisation.
Initially, BRAC imported 30,000 solar lights from D.light Design, an US company, which will reach the 10 lakh mark in the next five years, Hossain said.
He said his organisation will market three types of solar lights: d.light S1, d.light S10 and d.light S250.
“These products are strong, designed for maximum flexibility and are equipped with high-quality, efficient solar panels that are weather-resistant,” he said.
Additionally, d.light S.250 can serve as a mobile phone charger and has multiple brightness settings, he said.
Sudhir Chandra Nath, head of AFSP of BRAC, said they will market the solar lights through its extensive network in different districts, including Dhaka, Chittagong, Comilla, Mymensingh, Kishoreganj, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Dinajpur, Bogra, Jessore, Gopalganj and Jhalokathi, through dealers.
“Our network will reach the poor in hard-to-reach areas who will be able to pay in installments for the products. And this system will create a positive distributional impact, which will help to change the scenario of the rural Bangladesh in the long run.”
These lights will also be available in Bagerhat, Khulna, Satkhira, Borguna, Potuakhali and Pirojpur.
D.light design is a social enterprise started out in Palo Alto, California in 2006 fathered by a socially-motivated team of business people and engineers, including Sam Goldman, Ned Tozun, Gabriel Risk, Xianyi Wu, and Erica Estrada.
D.light is operating with a mission to enable households living without reliable electricity to attain the same quality of life as those with electricity.
-With The Daily Star input
