GOMPA, Nimba – The John Wesley Pearson High School in Ganta received a donation of assorted solar energy equipment from Mercy Corps last week as a means of providing lighting on the campus.

The donation is part of Mercy Corps’ plan for an additional 59 public facilities within the country that would include public schools and clinics.

Cephas Tetteh, Mercy Corps’ energy specialist, made the symbolic presentation on behalf of his institution, in the presence of the press.

“Mercy Corps Liberia’s Light Up Liberia program has the mandate to provide 60 institutions with solar lighting products,” Tetteh said.

“We look forward to providing solar lightings and not only to provide but to also installing 60 solar lights [at] public institutions in Liberia. When we talk about public institutions, it’s just not limited to public schools.”

The donation to the school includes four pieces of solar panels and two 60-watt power inverters, along with accessories. The equipment all amounted to an estimated cost of US$1,000.

The J. W. Pearson High School has been running a night-time adult literacy program at the school and Tetteh believes the donation would be a significant boost to the program, adding, “This will be able to provide a good learning opportunity for the students at night.”

Timothy Karlie, the vice principal of the school, received the donation on behalf of his institution. He stressed that the school’s authorities are delighted about the donation, as electricity supply has been one of the challenges faced by the institution.

He said while the power supplied by the solar panels is not enough to supply the entire school’s electricity needs, Mercy Corps “told us that in subsequent time they going to be providing more.”

The donation came following the launch of the Liberia Renewable Energy Fair in Ganta on June 6, 2017, by Rural Renewable Energy Authority and other partners.

“We will continue to work with our retailers here so that the people in Ganta and Nimba County can get access to solar lights and clean cooking stoves,” said Pamela Anderson, a representative of Mercy Corps at the Energy Fair. “These products are materials that last more than five years – they are durable. When you look at the length of time these products stay and the cost to get them, you will understand that they are very much affordable – I can tell you that energy is here to stay in Liberia.”

The Light Up Liberia program is supported by the European Union and aims to expand renewable energy to the vulnerable population of Liberia, creating an avenue where Liberians, mainly those in rural areas, can have access to affordable and assessable clear renewable energy to better their living conditions.

Featured photo by Arrington Ballah