Deforestation, due to the widespread use of charcoal or wood fired cookstoves, is a key issue for Madagascar. Solar energy, often suggested, seems ideal, but introducing such a new technology is challenging. It requires careful, culturally tailored planning to get the community to accept, adopt and utilize solar cooking. To address deforestation, Zahana decided to implement a solar cooking demonstration project and part of our overall participatory community development strategy.

By Zahana introducing and testing this new technology in the schools first, children will learn about solar cooking benefits first hand and can take this experience home.

Currently a variety of solar cooker models are sold in Madagascar, but the price makes them unobtainable for most villages. To identify the solar cooker most suitable for the local climate, Zahana plans to buy and test on 4 or 5 of the models currently available. Integrating the solar cooking of rice into the curriculum, the school children will test them, comparing the results over time. Applied math skills will be an added benefit to getting a warm school meal.

By starting small in our two schools and showing that solar cooking actually works, Zahana plans to scale up the project as soon as the most suitable technological model(s) are determined.

Zahana received a generous donation of Blazingtube solar cookers and solar water pasteurizers in February 2010 that have been shipped to Madagascar, the Blazintube solar being currently the most efficient solar cooker available.