acciona.org has carried out its first project in Panama, the Luz en Casa Ngäbe-Buglé Pilot, using solar home systems to bring electricity to 400 families in seven isolated rural communities located in western Panama, specifically in the Ngäbe Buglé indigenous region.

To this end, third-generation solar home systems have been installed, providing a basic electricity service in exchange for a monthly fee that is lower than the cost to users of alternative lighting systems (candles, torches, oil lamps, ... ).

This service provision model, which has already been implemented by acciona.org in about 12,000 homes in rural communities in Mexico and Peru with no prospect of being connected to the conventional electricity grid, ensures the project's long-term sustainability and scalability.

Under this pilot project, 2,250 Panamanians (more than half of them children) in the Ngäbe-Buglé region have available electric lighting for six hours a day and the possibility of accessing telecommunications systems and using small appliances (e.g. charge a mobile phone or run low-energy appliances such as a radio or TV).

In addition, acciona.org also set up a 'Centro Luz en Casa', run by a local entrepreneur who has been trained specifically to sell the electricity service, provide advice, repair the equipment and sell compatible appliances; this contributes to the revitalisation of the local economy and helps make the best possible use of the electricity.

Model of isolated communities electrification: a bid for sustainability

According to data from Inter-American Development Bank in Panama, there are 90,000 families in the country without access to electricity, which affects not only their living standards but also their health conditions, access to education and the socioeconomic development of these regions.

The Ngäbe-Buglé indigenous region has one of the lowest Human Development Index scores, below 0.5, which makes it the most impoverished area in the country.

acciona.org has developed a electricity service delivery model for isolated communities based on solar home systems that, due to their ease of installation and maintenance, are very suited to this type of isolated populations, which are not expected to be connected to the conventional electricity grid.

The third-generation solar home systems that acciona.org supplies consist of a 50W solar panel, a lithium battery, a charge controller, and three LED lamps. The equipment has a plug & play architecture, meaning it is very easy to transport and install, and it has an estimated useful life of over 20 years.

User pay a monthly fee that is averagely more than 30% lower than what they previously spent on alternative lighting methods (candles, torches, etc.). That is, the system costs 5 balboas per household per month, compared with previous expenditure of 7.5. This ensures the system's long-term economic sustainability.

acciona.org has implemented this project with the consent of the local authorities, including the Ngäbe-Buglé Indigenous Council; this approach guarantees implication on the part of users. The beneficiaries received training in system installation and maintenance, and a first 'Centro Luz en Casa' has been created with a local entrepreneur carrying out repairs and supply compatible equipment, under the supervision of acciona.org.

acciona.org: ten years providing basic services at the base of the pyramid

Since 2008, acciona.org  has brought electricity to over 50,000 people in isolated rural areas of Mexico and Peru. In the Peruvian region of Cajamarca, it provides electricity to almost 4,000 households, as well as to community centres (schools, churches), and to over 400 households in the Napo river basin, a tributary of the Amazon river. In Mexico it has implemented the Luz en Casa Oaxaca home electricity project, bringing electricity to more than 7,500 families. acciona.org is also involved in other initiatives, such as the 'Alianza Shire' to provide electricity to refugee camps in Ethiopia.

acciona.org is also carrying out projects to provide isolated communities, such as in the Mexican region of Oaxaca, with other basic services, including water, sanitation and safe cooking. In this way, the ACCIONA group's corporate foundation replicates the company's business by leveraging its know-how to universalise access to basic services for people at the base of the pyramid, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.