Environmental Benefits

Global: the major global benefit that the project set out to achieve was the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from fuelwood burning. In 2000, the project estimated that the project avoided at 10.84 Gt of carbon dioxide emissions annually through the 5476 stoves in use in 24 villages at that time. Today, with 11,728 stoves constructed, the estimated emissions avoided annually would be almost double that amount. These assumptions were based on an average usage rate of 5-6 kg of wood per day with traditional stoves, which the improved stoves would cut in half.

Local: the local forest reserve is less subject now to illegal wood-cutting. This is a benefit to the diverse flora and fauna located in the reserve.

Livelihood Benefits

Health: women who use the stove now breathe in less smoke. Although no official health studies have been done to illustrate the exact impacts, there seems to be a general improvement in women?s health since the implementation of the project. In addition, hygiene is improved, since women now have an easier time keeping their hands, cooking utensils and walls clean in the kitchen due to less smoke. This also saves water, which can then be used for other purposes.

Income: many families would buy wood for cooking. Now, they need to buy 50% less than before, resulting in saved income that can be used to meet other needs.
Social: women have reported more satisfactory relationships with men, since meals are cooked more quickly using two burners, and the food tastes better.
Employment: the project employs local women to run the smokeless stoves project. These young women originally faced social pressure not to work for the project, but this has changed greatly; now families come to them to help their daughters get jobs.

Capacity Building
The entire project is geared around building women?s capacity to build and disseminate the improved stoves, thereby enabling women to take action to improve their own well-being and that of their families. The Foundation has introduced several new ways to support women in achieving these goals, including:

Condensing the training sessions from five days to three days, to make it possible for more women to participate.
Inviting more women from a single village to a workshop to be trained to make the stoves. Even though only two of these women are selected to be promoters of the stove after the workshop, the larger group of women in that village with knowledge about the stove provides needed support to the promoters and in general results in greater adoption rates.

Partners
In addition to the communities themselves, GEF-SGP has been an important partner. On several occasions, monitoring visits by SGP staff resulted in suggestions for improvements, which were implemented by the Foundation with positive results. In addition, since the Escorts Foundation?s success in getting the stoves adopted, it has begun training other agencies, some of whom have been funded by SGP grants to participate in trainings. These agencies include CARITAS Pakistan, Punjab Rural Support Programme, Shaheen Welfare Society, Rural Development Project, Haripur and the Shahbaz Welfare Foundation. Escorts Foundation has also trained the staff of Pakistan Community Development Project for Rehabilitation of Saline and Waterlogged Land ? A UNDP and AusAid funded project.