Solar Cooking
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Last edited: 6 February 2018      
Mawahib Ahmed cooking photo

Mawahib Ahmed is a researcher with the National Center for Research in Sudan. Her work with solar cooking began in 1994 when she was a student, with studies focused on the link between food and energy usage. Her research was primarily testing the performance of a locally made solar box cooker. Tests were done to check the quality of preparing local recipes using the solar oven.

Since that time, she has continued working in energy conservation technologies, generally with the emphasis in solar cooking. Often working with various governmental and NGO organizations. Consulting with UNIDO, she developed a recipe booklet for staple Sudanese foods, done with women participation and support of the Nutrition and Education Center in Sudan.

She has trained over 600 women from different locales in Sudan, including Khartoum, Kordofan, Darfur, and Blue Nile, in the use of solar ovens. Currently, at the research level, she is working on a mechanism for the adoption of technologies. She is also examining the barriers that face sustainable solar cooking projects.

News[]

Mawahib Ahmed 2018b
Mawahib Ahmed 2018
  • February 2018: Solar Box Cooker Promotion Model in Alkiryab Village - Mawahib Ahmed reports: Solar cooking technology in Sudan started at research level since 70’s in Energy Research Institute but till now the technology doesn’t reach deployment stage. There were very limited efforts had been done during the last 40 years ,by some organization like UNIDO and NGOs like Sudanese environment Conservation Society for technology dissemination. Solar box cooker (SBC) is most appropriate for household use, but it needs to be adapted to Sudanese cooking pattern. Sudan like other least developing countries suffer from access to energy services, the most affected sector is household. Now there is a problem of affordability and accessibility for LPG as alterative for charcoal, providing environmental problem that comes from the use of charcoal. Solar cooking saves from 40-50 % of fuel when it is used with other alternative like LPG or charcoal. A model is being developed as a pilot project in Alkiryab village 18 km from Khartoum. The beneficiaries are women, the SBC was introduced with other energy alternative which is LPG gas cooker as one package The beneficiaries are 12 women. The overall goal of the model is to establish model for household energy conservation that includes solar box cooker that can applied in all Sudan. Other objectives are i) To access solar box cooker in targeted communities with reasonable price ii) To encourage women to use the solar box cooker as one of the alternative at home. The model is initiated by National Center for Research (Appropriate Technology Department, Institute of Engineering Research and Material technology), The responsible researcher is Dr.Mawahib Eltayeb Ahmed. The main partner is El Badail Company which is private company assigned to provide LPG gas cylinder, LPG cooker and SBC. The third partner is AlEbdaa bank is the financial body, which finance 12 women as micro finance project(18 months with 1% profit). Social responsibility money from Dal group (one of big private sector) support the price by 70%. There are some benefits gained from Solar Box Cooker introduction firstly it is clean and healthy technology women saved from 40-50% LPG monthly, accordingly there is money saved, secondly some women use it in for income generating activity by selling cup cakes or beans finally women can be part of carbon market credit.

Contact[]

Email: ahmed.mawahib@gmail.com