AfricaPress-Tanzania: CENTRE for Agricultural Mechanisation and Rural Technology (CAMARTEC) is conducting thorough research which will lead to a production of affordable solar cooker for villagers.
The institute wants to decelerate usage of firewood and charcoal energy in the rural areas thus cutting deforestation in the country.
CAMARTEC acting Director Mr Pythias Ntella told journalists who toured the institute recently that they target areas such as Dodoma, Shinyanga and Tabora.
“We are conducting research on the production of solar cooker technologies in places with highest solar energy potential,” he said.
The solar cooker apart from decreasing firewood and charcoal usage so save the environment will also reduce indoor pollution that affects health of rural people.
Currently, industry data show that 88.2 per cent of country’s households depend on charcoal as main source of domestic energy and estimated some 500,000 hectares of trees harvested annually.
The CAMARTEC boss told the journalists who are currently under a six month renewable Energy Journalism Fellowship facilitated by HIVOS East Africa, Nukta Africa and Journalists for Environment (JET), that the solar cooker technology once established would contribute to job creation and business opportunities for farmers in rural areas among others.
Meanwhile, CAMARTEC has trained 85 women and youth on how to build biogas to use and to maintain the plants.
The trainings were conducted in Loliondo District in Manyara Region. Mr Ntella said training was conducted in collaboration by CAMARTEC and Pastoral Women Council in Loliondo under the sponsorship of UN Women.
The training aimed to enable women and youth in the area acquire jobs and business opportunities in the renewable energy sector.
Currently, the centre is implementing biogas technology in the country and has since constructed over 12,000 biogas plants for individual and 125 for public and private institutions.
The centre has exported the technology and constructed 45 biogas plants to other countries.
