Kopernik has been implementing a project in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara and I have been very grateful to be in charge of that project. I always enjoy going there to monitor the progress and see the impact of the technologies we distributed in people’s lives. Now I am leading another exciting project on the exotic island of Alor which is also located in East Nusa Tenggara Province.
A beautiful beach in Alor
This project is part of the BOP (Base of the Pyramid) Multi-Sector Study and BOP Products Incubation, a project that was initially started in partnership with a Japanese Foundation. This project tests various clean energy and water technologies in BOP communities in Indonesia to get feedback, ascertain willingness to pay and see what types of distribution mechanisms would be most effective.
We implement the project in partnership with a savings and loans group named Topa Haliel, located in Lakwati Village, Alor Tengah Utara Sub-district. Based on the data from Badan Pusat Statistik (Indonesian Statistics Agency), the sub-district population is 11,135 which consists of 3,048 households. Last November, we conducted a base line survey to assess the socio-economic conditions of the people in Lakwati Village where we are implementing the project. Based on the results of the needs assessment, the average monthly income of IDR 250,000 – 500,000. The majority of the families work as farmers as their main source of income. Additional incomes are obtained from growing and selling livestock such as pigs, cows, goats and chickens. Some of the women in the village also make palm leaf mats as a handicraft to be sold as an additional source of income.
During the needs assessment, we used Village Mapping as one of the tools in assessing the energy and water conditions in the village
Cooking with firewoods using the traditional 3-stone stove is the most common cooking method in Alor
Infrastructure is very limited in the village. There is no electricity and all of the families still use and rely on kerosene lights. Rain water is the main source of drinking water. Each household has a water storage unit built by the government. There are also dug wells and springs however the water is very limited during the dry season. All of the families in the village cooking with firewood using 3-stone stove.
Apart from the rain water, the households in Lakwati Village rely on the natural spring water as the main source of drinking water
Kerosene light is the main source of light in Lakwati Village especially for children who rely on this unhealthy light to study at night.
After completing the needs assessment in November, two weeks ago we came back again to the village. This time we brought different energy and water technologies and presented them to the community members. I will tell you more about this in my next blog.
