Renewable Energy in Africa roundtable discussion
Session 1 - Power Quality and Access Challenges in low-resource settings
This session was presented by Tahir Buhari and Onche Ogbole from eHealth Africa. They focused on the causes and effects of power quality issues on health facilities in Nigeria.
Session Highlights
Common challenges include extreme voltage and frequency conditions that can pose a risk of permanently damaging medical equipment. This ultimately increases the cost of healthcare delivery.
According to a report by WHO and UN Foundation, the quality of energy access in health facilities may have cross-cutting impacts on other aspects of health services. These may include reduced hours of operations for a facility or damaged cold chain equipment, which leads to vaccine expiration.
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Case Study: How Solar Energy Can Improve Public Health in Nigeria
This case study by Heinrich Boell, Abuja highlights the lack of access to reliable electricity as one of the fundamental issues facing public health care centers.
Session 2 Panel Discussion - Renewable Energy and Strengthening Healthcare systems: Making the Connection.
Dr. Usman Muhammad Ibrahim a consultant Public Health Physician anchored this panel. The panelists included:
Stanley Onwunumah, Rural Electrification Agency- Nigeria Electrification Project.
Oluwatobi Soyombo, Havenhill Synergy Limited
Dr. Ifunanya Ilodibe, EHA Clinics
Session Highlights
Public, private, and non-governmental organizations play an important role in increasing renewable energy options for health care providers, particularly government-owned health care facilities.
There are successful national or subnational level health facility electrification programs that can act as a case study or blueprint for other countries. This serves as a guide to avoid mistakes that can lead to high-value losses.
Up-to-date data is required to formulate policies and plan interventions and solutions for renewable energy in health facilities. These policies ensure the deployment of resources where needed.
Session 3: Presentation - Renewable Energy as a lasting solution to the lack of access to power in rural health facilities.
This session was presented by Muhammad Imran and Òscar Monés from INTEGRATION environment & energy. The presentation pinpointed key considerations in promoting Renewable Energy solutions for rural health facilities.
Session Highlights
GIS-based grid supply quality assessments can help to identify sites that need renewable energy solutions as a priority.
Future investments in the health sector should provision for Renewable Energy based energy supply systems.
Monitoring of energy consumption of solar-based facilities is needed to inform future planning.
Community participation and adaptation are key to sustainability.
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