In a dimly lit room, in a local health centre that lies over 160 kilometres west of the capital of Madagascar, a young mother’s face radiates with joy and relief as she reaches for her newborn. The exhaustion from hours of labour fades away as she holds her baby for the first time and expresses her gratitude. Firstly, to the small team of health workers led by the town’s only physician, Dr Manda, who ensured the safe delivery of her newborn, eternally grateful that the lights stayed on during the entire procedure.
This young mother’s story is a microcosm of the challenges faced by the Mahasolo Health Centre. The ability of Dr Manda and his team to provide essential medical services to the 12,300 residents who rely on this facility, despite being severely hampered by an unreliable electricity supply, is nothing short of a miracle. Like the vast majority of rural facilities in the country, the health centre relies on a basic solar power system consisting of just two car batteries and a few solar panels. This inadequate set-up leads to frequent power outages, which hinder the team’s ability to treat patients effectively, particularly during the night. According to Dr Manda, “electricity is a matter of life and death”, with an unreliable supply of electricity rendering essential equipment, such as microscopes and refrigerators for storing vaccines, virtually useless.
Despite these daunting obstacles, Dr Manda remains optimistic about the future of the health centre thanks to a new project that promises to bring reliable energy to the town. The Universal Energy Facility (UEF) aims to deliver stable and continuous renewable energy to rural communities such as Mahasolo, powering vital services and economic activities.
The UEF is a results-based financing (RBF) facility that incentivizes private developers to supply, install, operate and maintain mini-grids of solar panels as well as to deploy high-capacity solar and battery storage systems to businesses and institutions in developing countries. It is managed by Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), an international organization that works in partnership with the United Nations, and funded by the private sector and other donors.
To date, 27 mini-grids have been installed, with more than 5,600 new verified connections benefitting approximately 25,000 people across the country.
For Dr Manda, a stable electricity supply would allow the health centre to properly store vaccines and temperature-sensitive samples, utilize laboratory equipment to its full potential and ultimately expand its treatment services. Moreover, deliveries and operations would no longer be confined to daylight hours, and the fear of power outages would cease to be an ever-present threat.
The promise of a brighter, more reliable future for the Mahasolo Health Centre not only brings joy to Dr Manda’s heart, but also offers hope for improved health outcomes for the entire community, ensuring that more mothers and their newborns can experience the simple yet profound joy of a safe delivery. He says, “I love my job because I am helping people to fight against their disease. When people are healthy, I have joy and peace in my heart.”
