Doussou Konate has never attended school. But in the small village of Keur Simbara, Senegal, the 57-year-old mother of six helps set up environment-friendly lighting systems that provide four hours of electricity per day.
Konate was one of seven Senegalese women who travelled to India two years ago to receive training as solar power engineers at the Barefoot College in Rajasthan.
In the villages of Keur Simbara and Keur Daouda, 50 households have now been equipped with a solar panel, a fixed lamp, a solar lantern, a ligh-emitting diode flashlight and a plug for charging cellphones, AlertNet reports.
“When night falls, everybody lights up their lamp and you can go anywhere you wish because everything is clear. It is just wonderful,” Konate said.
She added: “This is very important for the children who go to school … Before they had to hurry to do their homework while the sun was still up or study using candles and torches, but now they can study at any time of the day, even at night.”
