Energy consumption has become a key factor in the livelihoods of host community, in homesteads and places of business. The most frequent use of energy is in the homestead, mainly for cooking, and lighting. Over the years, the community has depended on firewood, which meant cutting down of trees, an act that contributed immensely to the destruction of the environment. RRDO along with its partners saw the need to provide an alternative source of cooking energy to lessen the reliance on firewood.
FIREWOOD
Firewood procurement and distribution to vulnerable refugee households was introduced to bring more control to its use, which has helped in protecting the environment. The harvesting of firewood is done in an organized and procedural manner with the involvement of all stakeholders (UNHCR, RRDO, government line ministries, County Government, Government administration, NEMA, Host community and the refugee community). The verified list of target beneficiaries is always produced by UNHCR from their database with the endorsement of camp refugee leaders.
LPG
In promoting use of alternative source of energy, UNHCR through RRDO piloted LPG project where 100 complete cylinders of LPG were procured and distributed to equivalent number of beneficiaries in Ifo 2 camp. The re-filling of the cylinders with liquefied petroleum gas was done on a monthly basis thus 5,400kgs of LPG was distributed to beneficiary households in Ifo2. The beneficiaries reported less time taken for cooking, safe use of the equipment and clean cooking energy thus reducing indoor air pollution.
STOVES
RRDO established a Stove Production Unit that is involved in fabricating portable stoves, that are distributed to refugees and the host community. Beneficiaries have been able to save on fuel and time, and would not have to worry about smoke pollution and excess heat. Proper training is provided to the beneficiaries to optimize the benefits. The stoves distributed as well as the solar lanterns are in use at the households. A brief follow up by RRDO to the households indicated that a greater impact is expected in terms of reduction of energy demand as well as overall improvement in security.
POWER SUPPLY
Power is a source of energy and its existence goes a long way to stimulate economic growth especially in urban and peri-urban settings. In 2011, RRDO partnered with UNHCR and the Government of Kenya to set up a power generation plant for Dadaab. The project was partly implemented by RRDO and partly by Rural Electrification Authority. Similarly, it was co funded by both UNHCR and the Government thorough Rural Electrification Authority (REA). This project is expected to be completed in May 2015, and handed over to the Kenya Power and Lighting Company.
