How an ingenious invention got solar powered

When a local villager from Mhuju in the Rumphi district of Malawi was unable to afford expensive electrical crop sprayers to treat devastating pest outbreaks and protect crops, he came up with his own incredible recycled design.

Noel Harawa designed and produced a crop sprayer using plastic bottles, switches and old radio cassette motors. The motor runs from batteries and Noel has made and sold more than 70 sprayers since he built his first in 2007.

The only flaw in the design were the cost of the batteries, limiting the product to farmers who could afford to replace them frequently. And that's where Solar Aid came in.

Noel had heard about Solar Aid and wanted to install a solar panel to light his home, so went to meet the team. However, as he talked with Solar Aid, they got curious about his invention and asked him to demonstrate it. Seeing a solution to its dependence on batteries, Solar Aid fixed the sprayer to the solar panel and the experiment worked perfectly!

Noel now plans to fit the sprayers with solar panels which he hopes will expand his customer base.  He is also experimenting with using local herbs to create pesticides which aren't derived from harmful chemicals and are much cheaper.

Maria Chenoweth-Casey Chief Executive at TRAID said, "This is what funding projects is all about, real sustainable change at the grassroots level that improves people's lives.  It's a fantastic use of Solar Aid's micro solar products and TRAID is delighted to have played a part in this."

TRAID will keep you updated with progress of this ground breaking project. To find out more visit SolarAid's website or check out the lighting Malawi homes blog.

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