Project Detail

Development of a Solar Village in Content, Saint David's, Grenanda

The village of Content is one of forty ? four (44) villages in the parish of St. David?s. It is considered a very poor community and was included in the eleven communities surveyed under the Government of Grenada poverty assessment profile in 1999. The community has a population of approximately 175 persons of which 95 are males and 80 females. (1991census).

The planning grant will help to develop a proposal through research and community consultations. The goal is to develop a project which will establish a demonstration site for the use of solar energy in this remote and marginalised village in Grenada. During project implementation such issues as reduction in fossil fuels, capacity building, national policy, and sustainable livelihood will be addressed.

The project objectives are as follows:

i. To promote accessible, sustainable, environmentally-friendly (renewable energy) technologies in the community and to the households. The technology will generate energy/power from the sun is easy to maintain and install. It is anticipated that the individuals within the households chosen will find no difficulty in accepting and promoting this new technology.

ii. To reduce and eliminate the cost of electricity bills to six poor households participating in the project. Personnel from Caribbean Sun Energy will install the equipment and provide the initial training and supervision of the project. They have already provided support in the form of quantifying the equipment and materials required for the individuals? household who were chosen to participate in the project.

iii. To build the capacity and awareness of the members of the households and the community about the benefits of renewable energy, energy efficiency, climate change and its effect on the country and the universe. This aspect of the project will be undertaken by Conservation Grenada in collaboration with Mr. John Ogiste from the Ministry of Agriculture, Energy, and Public Utilities and other personnel from the Ministry of Social Development.

iv. To encourage the adults within the six households chosen, to develop projects that will provide a sustainable income for themselves and their family. This will be done through training of individuals and the purchase of tools and equipment where necessary.

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Project Snapshot

Grantee:

Conservation Grenada Inc.

Country:

Barbados

Area Of Work:

Climate Change Mitigation

Operational Phase:

Phase 2

Grant Amount:

US$ 2,000.00

Co-Financing Cash:

Co-Financing in-Kind:

US$ 556.00

Project Number:

BAR/05/01

Start Date:

1/2005

End Date:

2/2005

Status:

Satisfactorily Completed

Project Characteristics and Results

Capacity - Building Component

Extensive capacity building to train community members in the efficient maintenance of systems is imperative to the ongoing success of the initiative.

Gender Focus

It is anticipated that men and women will both benefit from the project.

Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods

It is anticipated that the project will include training of the unemployed youth in the community in the maintenance of the solar systems.

Promoting Public Awareness of Global Environment

It is hoped that the community Content in Grenada can serve as a demonstration project to be better able to inform and promote the use of renewable energy throughout the wider populace of Grenada.

Policy Impact

The project was not designed to create new policies or impact on existing policies.

Notable Community Participation

Through the placement of solar systems in identified households, this project will result in ongoing consultations with the community.

Project Results

The Full Project Proposal was submitted and the following observations were made by the SGP Office:

Location: The village chosen seems to be an ideal one for such a demonstration project. Poverty and marginalisation seem to be the hallmark of the area.

Social and Economic Characteristics: Based on the profile given in the proposal the village is obviously suffering from economic depression and there are several social ills. It is obvious that the village requires a project which builds capacity for action and identifies and establishes alternative livelihoods. It is hoped that this project can help to establish a CBO with help from the appropriate Government Ministry.

Community Participation: It is expected that genuine community participation which took place during project development will continue as the households identified would have been as a result of major rounds of consultations. Without community participation that builds some level of capacity this project will fail. Community participation is a sine qua non for the success of this project without which fears over the security of the panels will materialise thus affecting the sustainability of the project.

Questions to consider in order to receive Project Funding:

Will the electricity provided by the panels satisfy the needs of the households?
Security: Would project recipients sign an agreement of some kind detailing a commitment to protection ad management of the panels and the appendages?

Unemployment and Underemployment: Could the proposal partially address the high unemployment /underemployment rate currently experienced in the community?
Government Support: In order to gain effective government support they should be regarded as a stakeholder, a partner and as potential co-funder of the project.

Cost/Benefit: To appeal to other households in addition to providing a justification for the project it would be necessary to do a cost/benefit of the use of conventional versus alternative energy for the village? That is, over what period will such a project pay for itself?

Land Tenure: What is the tenure of the land on which the houses selected are erected? Tenure can affect sustainability

Marketing: No doubt this project will help to market and promote GEF SGP, Conservation Grenada and Caribbean Sun. Long after the project completion date Caribbean Sun will be able to use this project for marketing.

Sustainable Livelihoods: A community?s viability is based not only on meeting basic needs but also on generating income. Can the project identify some form of alternative livelihood e.g. using alternative energy to dry fruits or some primary product? It is in combining sustainable livelihood possibilities and domestic needs that we can ensure project sustainability.

Policy: This demonstration project could become a catalyst for policy change in Grenada with respect to the use of alternative energy. We believe that policy development, or change, and/or approval should be one of the project objectives.

Since all GEF/SGP projects must have both in-kind and cash co-funding and this project has zero cash co-funding it would not be able to receive funding until it is able to attract the necessary co-financing.

Most of the funds are going to contracts. We are hoping that Conservation Grenada and in particular Caribbean Sun will co-fund by either investing some cash or funding in at least 4 houses so we can have a system of at least 10 houses. Think of the future marketing potential of a viable and successful project for the business side of Caribbean Sun.

In addition to the above comments we recommend that the project should be developed with the following components:

Education: community and public education. For example, invite the media and general public to get involved and aware.

Establishment of Demonstration Units:
Training: With 10 households can you train a few young people to set up and maintain these units?

Sustainable Livelihoods: What can be produced and needs alternative energy in the processing stage?

Policy: how can this project improve the enabling environment for alternative energy in Grenada? This project has immense possibilities for replication.

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