WICA Magazine

In the heart of Sub-Saharan Africa, a community of 10,000 women is quietly and almost unnoticedly sparking a revolution. While more than 600 million people across the continent still lack access to electricity, these determined female entrepreneurs, known as Solar Sisters, are spreading solar energy and clean cookstoves in their communities.

At the core of this initiative is Katherine Lucey, the founder and CEO of Solar Sister. Katherine was working on energy access at the country level in Uganda and saw the impact of energy poverty on rural communities. For these families, everyday tasks like cooking dinner in the dark, children trying to study at night, and the nocturnal journey to the latrine were daily challenges.

But there was a glimmer of hope on the horizon—the emergence of small, handheld solar lamps. These devices could be a game-changer, offering a feasible and cost-effective alternative to kerosene lamps, which had long been a burden on rural families’ finances, and a health hazards.

That was enough to encourage Katherine to start Solar Sister, an organization whose mission would be to bridge the gap between the availability of these solar products and the communities that needed them the most.

A marketing and distribution challenge

But how do you get the products into the hands of the people who need them the most? How do you create awareness and trust for a new product?

Katherine explains: “As we looked at how to solve that puzzle, the first question to ask is really who the customer for household solar is? Who’s going to buy these products? And the customer is the woman in the household who is currently spending her little bit of income to walk to the market, buy kerosene, bring it home, fill up her lamps with kerosene. And what we wanted her to do instead of making that journey was to make a conscious decision to buy a solar lamp.”

To reach these women in rural households with this new technology, Katherine and her team decided to establish a network of local women entrepreneurs, the Solar Sisters. In 2009, ten first women from Uganda embarked on a journey to light up their lives and communities with solar lamps, pioneering what would become the Solar Sister movement.

Katherine explains: “They used the product themselves first and were then able to sell the products to their friends and neighbours based on their own experience. It’s a very authentic kind of sharing rather than some salesman coming in with a slick presentation. The women would sell these lamps, saying things like ‘you know my son, he’s #1 in his class because he’s now able to study every night because we had this lamp that I can afford to keep on for hours and that doesn’t hurt his eyes.’ They shared their personal experiences, and that’s what other people bought into.”

Katherine adds that while most of these women might not have the authority for significant capital investments, they are pivotal in managing daily expenses, paying utility bills, and balancing checkbooks within their households. Their expertise in making sound economic decisions, even in the face of limited household income, also transformed them into formidable businesswomen.

Through training and support, Solar Sister is supporting women to start local businesses and sell solar products and clean cookstoves. This approach, built on trust, created the local distribution that was desperately needed.

An initiative that benefited entire communities

“Solar Sisters are true social entrepreneurs,” says Katherine Lucey. “They are committed to this work, both because of the social benefits and because it does provide some economic opportunity for them in a way that fits their lives.”

They encourage entire communities to adopt reliable, cost-effective, and sustainable sources of clean energy. In addition to promoting better health and safety by eliminating indoor air pollution and the threat of accidental fires associated with kerosene lamps, the solar lamps also extend productive hours for studying and working, thereby fostering educational opportunities and economic growth. And the reduced carbon footprint obviously contributes to a cleaner environment and a more sustainable future.

But the impact goes even beyond that.

In Nigeria, a poignant story unfolds where internally displaced persons returned to their home community after the camp where they lived had closed a decade after they had left. One of them explained that she faced scepticism and mistrust from the community, as she had lost her connections and resources. But becoming a Solar Sister entrepreneur gave her newfound confidence, income, and identity. She reported to Katherine: ‘Now when people walk by me, they know that I can contribute something to the community.’ She became a respected contributor to the community.

“Another Solar Sister entrepreneur has been asked to run for local council because of her work and because she’s become known in the community as a leader,” explains Katherine.

Many women entrepreneurs also apply the skills they gain from their Solar Sister experience to other ventures. For instance, Solar Sisters in the Lake Victoria region pooled their earnings to buy boats, a smart business move. These boats were rented to fishermen, allowing them to participate in the local fishing industry – a field traditionally reserved for men – without venturing out onto the water themselves.

A training program specifically designed for rural women entrepreneurs

The Solar Sister women entrepreneurs meet monthly in local Sisterhood groups. This is a place where they can receive and offer support, celebrate successes, and solve problems together. It’s also where Solar Sister staff provides new inventory and training.

“The training program is specifically designed to be accessible for all, even those who might not have had the opportunity to go to school,” explains Katherine Lucey. There, they learn basic business skills, how to use the technology, and softer skills like building self-confidence and self-awareness. Now that some women entrepreneurs have been with Solar Sister for a decade, the organization also offers advanced training opportunities covering topics like expanding services, formalizing businesses, and achieving financial stability.

In the ongoing journey of Solar Sister, it’s the determination of the remarkable women at the heart of the mission who fuel Katherine Lucey’s dedication. “What started me on this journey was meeting women who had so much to give in their communities and were so willing to do the hard work and take on the challenge and learn something new. I was blown away by that original group of ten solar sisters, by their willingness to step into this idea and run with it. Now every time we turn around, more women want to become entrepreneurs. And I feel like we’ve always been running to catch up with them.”

Katherine acknowledges the challenges of running a social enterprise, especially across multiple countries. But in moments of doubt, when numbers and hurdles threaten to overshadow the mission, Katherine finds solace in their stories. Each one exemplifies the real impact, bringing positive change not only to themselves but also to their communities and families.

Support Solar Sister by donating to their mission.