Migori County launched its first ever green energy exhibition joining the rest of the world in the race to address the negative impacts of climate change.
This comes in the wake of a worrying outcome of recent studies that put southern Nyanza region and Migori County in particular in the lowest rank in adoption and use of renewable green energy resources technologies.
The study underscores the urgent need to sensitize the public in the region to raise the use of renewable green energy.
This rare event brought together a host of stakeholders who included the County Government of Migori, the Ministry of Energy and Kenya Forest Research Institute to showcase their products with a view to popularize the new technologies and adoption by the people for sustainable development.
The exhibition was also aimed at bringing the key players in the energy sector together to enhance networking between consumers and producers in line with the accessibility of the clean energy resources within the domestic and foreign markets.
According to the Director of renewable energy, Migori Energy Center, Mr Joseph Tilikia, the event was one of the key steps in raising the adoption of green energy in Migori County since it provided a platform to both producers and consumers to showcase their items as well as consumers to be given useful information on the same.
“We are bringing together producers and consumers to address the questions arising on where to get these kinds of technologies as well as the market to sell them. We are championing for good networking between the key stake holders so as to raise the adoption of green energy in Migori to another level,” added Tilikia.
The sensitization on the adoption of clean energy comes in time when prices of fuel have skyrocketed beyond the people’s financial power.
A big number of households are at the moment struggling to meet high rising costs of kerosene and gas and, for sure, the only affordable energy is through embracing green energy resource, apart from being healthy for both users and the environment.
Tilikia said the trade fair was one way to challenge the local population to adopt the use of clean energy cooking devices like energy saving jikos which uses less charcoal, improved cooking stoves as well as solar concentrators, all which are aimed at conserving the environment from energy pollution.
Also present at the event were different development partners such as Practical Action and Kenya Women Finance Trust (KWFT) that also championed green energy for sustainable development.
The General Manager KWFT, Mrs Mulinda Lirunde, said they promote the adoption of green energy through sensitizing their clients to use solar light energy and improved cooking solutions, which they help them in financing their purchases on affordable loan terms.
“We have partnered with other solution providers like Sunking and solar transfer so as to be here to help our clients to get these items that promote the use of green energy for sustainable development through chipping in as financial partners. We provide affordable loans that have fair repayment structures,” added Lirunde.
By Polycarp Ochieng
