I was asked recently to
write a piece of commentary on how my placement has been going. More
than happy to oblige, I may as well take the chance to copy & paste
it into a blog update.
In the meantime I'm off on my holidays, but more about that later!
Tom
----
 |
| The bustling streets of Kariakoo in central Dar |
I’m writing from Dar es
Salaam in Tanzania. “Dar es Salaam” literally means Haven of Peace,
although with the hustle and bustle of this city it’s hard to imagine a
time when such a name was appropriate!
Finance Advisor to an NGO
I’ve been with Solar Aid as a Finance Advisor for five months now, approaching the half way mark in my placement.
It’s with pleasure that I’ve
been able to translate my commercial & financial experience from
Europe, into helping establish the solid finance procedures necessary to
underline the successful growth of this aspirational NGO in Tanzania.
The need for full and proper
accountability is not only important to donors, especially at a time
when resources are scarce, but also particularly when an organisation,
such as Solar Aid, expands its operations.
And the real benefit of
being on a long-term placement is that it affords me the opportunity to
make sufficient grounding in the processes I implement, so that the
benefit of what I do will hopefully continue long after my placement
finishes.
How Solar Aid is progressing
Solar Aid’s “big hairy audacious goal” is to eradicate the Kerosene Lantern from Africa by 2020.
In a country where 90% of
people don’t have access to the Grid, Kerosene (dangerous, unclean,
non-sustainable, and prohibitively expensive) pales in comparison to
Solar (safe, renewable, and affordable). All that was missing was for
someone to facilitate the change - step forward Solar Aid.
 |
The context of the growth
Solar Aid Tanzania is facing should not be underestimated - last year it
lit up just under 30,000 lights in Tanzania, this year the target is
180,000 and over eighteen months it’s a third of a million.
And that’s before even considering operations in Kenya, Malawi and
Zambia!
The current campaign is
focused around getting these lights into the hands of school-children
throughout the country, believing that every child should have the
opportunity to own one. These lights allow children
to read and study after dark – something so simple yet hugely beneficial,
something so many of us take for granted.
Such goals do not come easy
without proper accountability. Planning, forecasting and managing cash
flows must all be monitored carefully.
Naturally we also like to
ensure that these little lights don't develop little legs along their
journey, and that each of their trips from a factory in China into the
hands of a Tanzanian child is a successful one!
The next 6 months
 |
| Lighting up Africa |
‘Keep up the good work!’ seems to be the call of the day.
The staff here really have
been fantastic – everyone is keen to show what they can do, and all take
pride in the success of the campaigns. It will be testing as the
campaign continues to grow, but I really am very optimistic at the
outlook.
It's very enjoyable to work in such a positive atmosphere, and
I’m very happy to continue playing my part.
Kwa heri,
Tom
