SolarAid is delighted to announce that it has taken the top prize in the International Aid & Development category at this year’s Charity Awards, the longest-running and most prestigious awards scheme in the charity sector.
SolarAid was recognised for its Light a Village programme in Malawi, piloting the free installation of plug-and-play solar home energy systems in Kasakula, one of the country’s poorest and remotest communities.
The charity have installed the systems in 4000 of Kasakula’s 7,500 households after finding that even the poorest families could generally afford to pay for the energy they used, provided they didn’t need to stump up for the cost of installation. The fees they pay (3 pence a day) covers the cost of maintenance such as replacing batteries – making the model sustainable and scalable.
The project was a success and is now being rolled out to the rest of the community this year achieving universal energy access in the area. Solar enterprises in Senegal, Sierra Leone and Madagascar have now expressed interest in replicating the scheme and SolarAid are actively engaging the Malawian Ministry of energy to explore how this could be the solution to electrifying more off-grid communities..
Alongside the nine other category winners, the Overall Winner and the recipient of the Daniel Phelan Award for Outstanding Achievement, SolarAid was presented with the trophy at a black-tie ceremony at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on 9 July, hosted by broadcaster, commentator and writer Baroness Ayesha Hazarika.
The Charity Awards shortlist is chosen by an independent panel of expert judges, themselves all eminent figures in the charity sector. The judges score each entry against six Hallmarks of Excellence before coming together for two days of challenge and discussion to select the winners.
For 24 years, the Charity Awards has been shining a spotlight on the vital and inspiring work that UK charities carry out right across our own country, and beyond. In 2024, the sector is contending with soaring costs, rising demand and shrinking donations, yet the resilience, ambition and innovation in these applications continues to impress and inspire us. In a year of record entries, SolarAid should be hugely proud of this prize.
Matt Nolan, chief executive of Civil Society Media