The Difficulty with Harnessing the Omnipresent Solar Energy in Africa Hai-Vu Phan SIT Study Abroad

SIT Graduate Institute/SIT Study Abroad SIT Digital Collections Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection SIT Study Abroad Fall 2009 The luE siveness of Light: The Difficulty With Harnessing the Omnipresent Solar Energy in Africa Hai-Vu Phan SIT Study Abroad Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/isp_collection Part of the African Studies Commons, and the Oil, Gas, and Energy Commons Recommended Citation Phan, Hai-Vu, "The Elusiveness of Light: The Difficulty With Harnessing the Omnipresent Solar Energy in Africa" (2009). Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection. 780. https://digitalcollections.sit.edu/isp_collection/780 This Unpublished Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the SIT Study Abroad at SIT Digital Collections. It has been accepted for inclusion in Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection by an authorized administrator of SIT Digital Collections. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Elusiveness of Light The Difficulty with Harnessing the Omnipresent Solar Energy in Africa By Hai-Vu Phan Fall 2009 Switzerland: International Studies, Multilateral Diplomacy, and Social Justice Academic Directors: Gyula Csurgai and Alexandre Lambert Yale University Political Science and International Studies 1 Copyright Permission The author hereby does grant the School for International Training the permission to electronically reproduce and transmit this document to the students, alumni, staff, and faculty of the World Learning Community. The author hereby does grant the School for International Training the permission to electronically reproduce and transmit this document to the public via the World Wide Web or other electronic means. The author hereby does grant the School for International Training the permission to reproduce this document to the public in print format. Student Name: Hai-Vu Phan Signature: Date: 2 Abstract The world is currently facing an energy crisis. Our dependency on oil and natural gas has led to many global problems, such as OPEC’s oil hikes which have disrupted economies everywhere and caused oil dependent countries to suffer. Our huge consumption of oil has also led to the global warming catastrophe that we currently must combat. The world must find a new energy source soon, or more environmental, political, social, and economic problems will occur. Solar energy’s potential has been recognized for many decades, and its abundant and limitless supply makes it the perfect new form of energy. Solar energy is especially plentiful in Africa where the sun shines all year round. Ironically, this seemingly cure-all solution has not yet been widely exploited in Africa. This situation seems illogical, and this paper strives to investigate the reasons why solar energy has not yet proliferated in Africa. If Africa can adopted solar energy, it will alleviate many economic, social, and political problems for its people and the environment. This paper argues that solar energy proliferation has been challenged by the lack of supply and demand in solar energy caused by extreme poverty and the composition of the African society, hindrances which political instability has only exacerbated. By pointing out the causes of why solar energy usage cannot grow in Africa, the world can change its methods and target the real reasons that are obstructing solar energy expansion. Hopefully shedding light on this riddle will make solar energy become a common source of energy in Africa and the world. 3 Preface I first became aware of how powerful energy can be in the global arena when I learned about the Russian-Ukraine energy crisis which caused almost all of Western Europe to be without electricity for several weeks in the dead of winter. This led me to choose the topic of energy security in the twenty-first century for my ISS paper. Solar energy seems to be an answer to energy security problems. It is limitless, powerful, environmentally safe, obtainable, and everyone has it so one nation cannot use it as political blackmail. Especially now with global warming such a big threat, the need to convert from non-renewable energy to renewable energy is even more urgent. Yet, astonishingly, nations are barely scraping the surface when it comes to solar energy research and investment. I wanted to find out why nations, especially those in Africa that have a lot of sunlight, have not tried to expand solar energy usage before, and this paper is the end result of my inquisitiveness. Acknowledgements I would like to sincerely thank Professor Csurgai and Professor Lambert for guiding me throughout the evolution of my ISP project. I came into this project with a very broad sense of what I wanted to research, and they helped me narrow down my topic by giving me ideas and contacts so that I can pinpoint exactly what I wanted to study. I would also like to recognize the support that my family and my Swiss family have given me by being my moral support and providing me with a warm environment where my thoughts can flourish. I would like to acknowledge the many people who were kind 4 enough to spare some time from their busy schedules to meet with me and impart on me some of their expertise. These people are: Colin Archer, Younis Ahmed, Etienne Cadestin, Roger Zurcher, Coumba Fall, Vicente Yu, Avani Dixit, Derek Christie, and an anonymous retiree from the ILO. Last, but not least, I want to thank my fellow SIT colleagues with whom I was able to discuss my preliminary ideas. Table of Contents Abstract·······················································································3 Preface························································································4 Acknowledgements······································································4 The Elusiveness of Light I. The Barren Continent Full of Resources ·························6 II. Solar Energy Systems···················································8 III. Solar Energy Promotion Is Not a New Occurrence ·········10 IV. Many Benefits of Solar Energy ······································11 A. A More Comfortable Way of Life ·····························12 B. A Healthier Option ·················································13 C. Economic Advantages···········································14 D. Environmentally Sound ···········································14 V. Obtainability of Solar Energy Technology······················15 VI. Barriers to Obtaining Solar Energy·································17 A. The Problem with Demand······································18 B. The Problem with Supply ·········································25 C. The Political Obstacles············································27 VII. Learning from Past Mistakes·········································29 5 VIII. Current Initiatives ························································34 IX. Thinking Toward the Future ··········································37 X. Bibliography·······························································39 6 "These countries do not have to become hydrocarbon based societies. They have the opportunity to skip from the 19th Century to the 21st Century." Neville Williams Solar Electric Light Fund, USA UNCED 1992 1 The Elusiveness of Light: The difficulty with harnessing the omnipresent solar power in Africa The Barren Continent Full of Resources The colonial period has left many residual effects in Africa that have crippled Africa’s development. The Western states left a power vacuum in Africa after their departure because the indigenous population did not have experience in governing. Synthetic borders grouped several ethnic groups under the same political structure or split a nation between several states, resulting in political and social tension 2. Instability and insecurity have seriously hindered development, and Africa is now home to many of the poorest of the poor in the world. Many people live for under $1 a day, and 1 International Solar Energy Society. Solar Energy Solutions for an Environmentally Sustainable World. ISES. June 1992. 2 Ahmed, Younis. Consultant, International Peace Bureau. Personal Interview. 21 October 2009. Yu III, Vicente Paolo B. Programme Coordinator, Global Governance for Development Programme, South Centre. Personal Interview. 16 November 2009. 7 children die from hunger every day. Women can spend hours each day gathering water that might not even be clean. There are widespread diseases, such as malaria and AIDS, but there are not enough hospitals and clinics to take care of everyone 3. In most countries, no more than twenty percent of the population has direct access to electricity 4.In rural areas, which are where the majority of Africans live, this number is about two percent of the population (Madamombe). New statistics on the worsening suffering in Africa blast across newspapers and headlines so frequently that people have become desensitized to its actual severity. Poverty in Africa is such an issue that the entire world has been trying to combat it for decades, but with little effect. Paradoxically, Africa is actually a country rife with resources. The northern, southern, and western regions of Africa have large fossil fuel reserves. Nigeria and Libya are two of the leading oil exporters of the world 5. Africa has a wealth of natural resources and minerals, along with large tracts of forests and land. It also has great coastlines suitable for harnessing wind and tide energy (Desertec-Africa 6). Many rivers course through Africa,

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