Soleil Burkina
The company Soleil Burkina was founded in
2006, to promote the use of solar energy in a
commercially sustainable way. It focuses on
three complementary areas:
- the sale, installation and maintenance of
solar equipment
- the planning and budgeting of projects
- the local training of craftsmen (electricians,
plumbers, carpenters)
Soleil Burkina plans to start by concentrating
first on a limited range of products, and to
achieve economic sustainability. As a non-
profit organisation, Soleil Burkina reinvests
into the pre-financing of solar products, to
facilitate their instalment-base sale and
increase their market presence.
Why solar technology in Africa?
My interest in the promotion of solar energy in Switzerland started in 1994, and my involvement in Africa
dates from 2000. This new focus can be traced back to the solar Congress SUN21. It opened my eyes to
the fact that the vast majority of Africans live in rural areas with no energy source for their daily needs (for
cooking, washing, hygiene etc) apart from firewood. This is a major cause of the ongoing deforestation
which, in its turn, impacts global climate and thus the ecological balance of Europe and Switzerland.
SUN21 gave me the opportunity to meet many people dedicated to the promotion of solar energy in Burkina
Faso. After six years of preparation, a few colleagues from Burkina Faso and I founded the company Soleil
Burkina, with offices in Ouagadougou and Bobo Dioulasso.
Franziska Heusser
To improve living conditions and drive economic growth, five basic
needs, which can all benefit durably from solar technology, must be
addressed.
Basic needs
1 - local access to drinking water of sufficient
quality
2 - basic medical care (local clinics, maternity
wards)
3 - access to energy for cooking, water heating,
and food-processing
4 - improved conditions for teaching and training
5 - improvements in individual and collective
communication
Solar solutions
1 - local well drillings and pumps
2 - lighting, water heating, refrigerators
3 - ovens, cookers, water heaters, and
dryers for families and communities
4 - lighting for classrooms & teacher
quarters
5 - solar power for radio and TV sets
and for mobile phones
