TANZANIA – The Bakhresa Group has launched a groundbreaking initiative to distribute 10,000 eco-friendly ethanol stoves to small-scale food vendors across Tanzania within a year.
This move is part of the Group’s “Azam Wheat Flour Clean Energy Campaign,” which aligns with Tanzania’s National Clean Cooking Strategy, launched by President Dr. Samia Suluhu Hassan in May 2023.
The campaign aims to promote clean cooking energy, reduce deforestation, and improve public health by providing vendors with sustainable alternatives to firewood and charcoal.
At the launch ceremony, Mr. Hussein Sufiani, Bakhresa’s Head of Public Relations, emphasized the company’s commitment to combating forest loss and protecting vulnerable food vendors from the adverse effects of unclean energy use.
The campaign targets food vendors, who are often reliant on harmful cooking fuels like charcoal, which contribute to deforestation and respiratory illnesses such as lung cancer.
“Bakhresa is undertaking necessary interventions to confront forest losses by supporting the government’s efforts to boost clean cooking energy use nationwide,” Mr. Sufiani stated.
The campaign will begin next week in Dar es Salaam, where the first 500 ethanol stoves will be distributed, before expanding to other regions, especially in marketplace hubs.
The ethanol stoves, manufactured locally by Consumers’ Choice Limited, are a clean energy solution made from ethanol—a byproduct of sugarcane production.
The stoves are designed to be both user- and environment-friendly, providing an affordable, portable, and efficient cooking alternative.
Ms. Frida Mlingi, Managing Director of Consumers’ Choice Limited, noted, “The ethanol stoves are highly efficient, portable, and easy to use, making them ideal for small food vendors.”
Reducing forest loss and protecting public health
Tanzania is among the African countries grappling with the harmful effects of unclean cooking energy.
According to the Ministry of Energy, over 80% of Tanzanians still rely on firewood and charcoal, which contribute to 25% of the country’s forest loss.
These fuels also emit harmful pollutants like carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, which pose serious health risks. The Ministry reports that nearly 33,000 people die annually in Tanzania due to illnesses caused by unclean cooking fuels, including respiratory diseases like lung cancer.
The National Clean Cooking Strategy aims to increase the use of clean cooking energy to 80% by 2034, a significant leap from the current 10%. The distribution of these stoves marks an important step toward achieving this goal.
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