Gender Equality Lesotho Project #13589

Solar Jobs & Energy - Village Minigrids in Lesotho

by STG International

Project Report | Jul 3, 2023
OnePower expands to Benin!

By Matt Orosz | CEO / Director, OnePower

Renewable electricity - in Benin!

I am writing today to share some exciting news - earlier this year OnePower acquired a small minigrids startup in Benin, starting the process of expanding our mission and impact beyond Lesotho!

In May I traveled to Benin to work with our small-but-hard working Beninois team from MIONWA, in collaboration with our colleagues from PowerOn, to turn the lights on in the quiet village of Samionta. We had a busy few weeks displaying teamwork, resilience, and sheer determination working on everything from importing parts to wiring up pay-as-you-go meters to assembling our PV generation site. Brigette Gblago, a proud resident of Samionta, became the first person in her village to get electricity - and we are looking forward to serving thousands more in this and other communities across Benin.

As with all of our work, this achievement would not have been possible without the support of countless individuals and organizations. In particular I would like to take this opportunity to extend our heartfelt thanks to all of our supporters, including you!, but also including the many different organizations and individuals helping with everything from funding to contracting to logistics. This is truly an international team effort, and I'm so excited to share the attached photos with all of you.

As always, we appreciate your continued interest and engagement with our mission! Sending enthusiastic 4th of July wishes to everyone in the USA this weekend!

Cheers,

Matt

First customer - lights turn on!

Village at dusk

The whole team celebrates the first connection

Matt and MIONWA team at the first village site

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