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Project Brief

SWEPA Barefoot Solar Project Empowering Rural Communities through Sustainable Energy & Education

Written and compiled by : Hanaa Wong Abdullah (Project Deputy Chairperson)

Photos & Articles contributed by : Casey Leong (Blog Master)

Mary Chin (Daily Express)

Datuk Adeline Leong (Project Chairperson)

Datin Jeanette Tambakau (Project Adviser)

Yap Li Ling (Project Manager)

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Index

Objectives of this Project………………………………………………………………………. 3

Barefoot College……............................................................................................ 3

The SWEPA Barefoot Solar Project……………………………………..…………. 4

October 2013/ How it began

SWEPA’s Project Team

May 2014 / Bunker Roy visits Sabah

September 2014 / Tarihing leaves for India

January 2015 / SWEPA and PACOS visit Tarihing in India

March 2015 / Tarihing returns home

April 2015 / TVi interview on live talk show

June 2015 / The equipment arrives in Kg. Sonsogon Magandai

SWEPA’s Project Partners……….………………………………..…………………. 13

What’s Next……………..…………………………………………………………………. 15

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Objectives of this Project

1. Provide Solar Energy to Remote Villages with no electricity

2. Empowerment of Women as Agents of Change

3. Empowerment of Community in Village

Consideration

There are more than 100 villages in the state which are off-grid and non-electrified.

Off-grid Rural communities who have access to sustainable energy resources can have better

opportunities for development, enabling provision of better education and healthcare, access

to clean water, sanitation and nutrition, growth of productive enterprises to boost incomes,

security and gender equality.

Barefoot College

The Barefoot College is a voluntary organization working in the fields of education, skill

development, health, drinking water, women empowerment and electrification through solar

power for the upliftment of rural people which was founded by Bunker Roy in 1972.

The Barefoot College is viewed as a success story because it is shown as an example of what

is possible if very poor people are allowed to develop themselves. It is a new concept that has

stood the test of time.

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The SWEPA Barefoot Solar Project (swepabarefootsolarproject.wordpress.com)

October 2013

This project began in October 2013, when SWEPA Past President, Datuk Adeline Leong, led a

team of SWEPA members to Kuala Lumpur to attend the Global Marketing Summit and there,

met up with Bunker Roy, founder of Barefoot College.

Upon their return to Kota Kinabalu, Datuk Adeline organized a team and set in motion the

first steps to identify a village which would meet Bunker’s requirements. It took several

months but with the help of Asian Forestry Company, finally Kampung Sonsogon Magandai

was identified in the district of Kota Marudu.

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SWEPA Project Team

1. Project Chairperson : Datuk Adeline Leong

2. Deputy Chairperson : Hanaa Wong Abdullah

3. Project Advisor & Treasurer : Datin Jeanette Tambakau

4. Project Manager : Yap Li Ling

5. Project Secretary : Kate Chin

6. Asst. Treasurer : Geraldine Ascunsion

7. Committee Member : Karen Wong

8. Committee Member : Maria Joy Rowan

9. Committee Member : Pang Suk Ching

May 2014

In May 2014, Bunker Roy, with Meagan Fallone who manages Global Strategy,

Implementation and Development for Barefoot College, made their fist visit to Sabah.

This trip’s objective was for Bunker to personally select the 2 grandmothers from the village

to travel to India and stay there for 6 months to learn how to build, connect and maintain

the solar kits, solar panels and lanterns.

After some community discussions and a number of interviews, translated by SWEPA, 3

grandmothers were identified and selected.

However, due to various personal reasons, two grandmothers backed out from the

commitment to travel to India and only one remained steadfast and brave. She was Tarihing

Masanim, mother of 4 and grandmother or 8.

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September 2014

Tarihing left Kota Kinabalu with Yap Li Ling on September 15th, 2014 and arrives back in Kota

Kinabalu on 16th March 2015. It is hoped that she will have learned everything she needs to

further train the other women in her kampung, to install the solar panels on the rooftops of

the 100 houses in her kampung, to connect the wiring from the panels to the lights and to

maintain all the equipment including the rechargeable solar lanterns.

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January 2015

In January 2015, a group of 11 women from SWEPA and PACOS, led by President Datin

Jeanette Tambakau, went to India to visit Tarihing at the Barefoot College in Tilonia.

March 2015

Tarihing returned to Sabah

on March 16th, 2015.

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TARIHING’S HOME COMING RECEPTION 17th MARCH 2015

Datuk Adeline, Datin Jeanette, Kota Marudu

District Officer Sualim Sanan, Tarihing, Hanaa

Wong Abdullah

Project Chair Datuk Adeline’s welcome

address.

Anne Lasimbang “interviewing” Tarihing who

shared her 6 months’ experience and had the

audience in stiches.

MPWS Council Members Joanna Kitingan

Julita Ontol, Datuk Margaret Fung with

Tarihing, Hjh Baiyah and Hanaa.

SWEPA and Tarihing boleh!

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Official Media Partner Daily Express’s

coverage on Tarihing’s home-coming.

Picture of when Tarihing was reunited with

her husband who came to Kota Kinabalu from

Kota Marudu for the reception.

April 2015

Tarihing left Kg. Sonsogon Magandai for Kota Kinabalu for a TVi interview about her

experience in India and what she learnt, on a live talk show. Project Advisor Datin Jeanette

Tambakau accompanied Tarihing on the show to talk about the project.

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June 2015

Project Organizing Chairperson Datuk Adeline Leong, with Datin Jeanette Tambakau, Yap Li

Ling and Geraldine Ascunsion made the trip to Kota Marudu for the helicopter air-lift from

Bomba of the 241 boxes of equipment shipped from India bound for Kg. Sonsogon

Magandai.

The villagers were excited to receive the equipment and happily carried all the boxes to the REW

building.

Datin Jeanette and Geraldine stayed overnight at Kg. Sonsogon Magandai to conduct a community

meeting to brief the villagers on what is expected to happen next i.e. for them to set up a Village

Committee to manage the stock, installation and monthly collections. All agreed to do their best.

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June 2015

Tarihing, over to you!

Light up your village!

Daily Express 16 June 2015

The REW building. Tarihing at work in the workshop.

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June 2015

Tarihing is training her team and

transferring what she learnt in India to

them so they can assist her in the

installation.

The first solar panels are up!

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SWEPA’s Project Partners

1. Asian Forestry Company – to assist in identifying the village, organize and provide

logistical support and providing continued communication between SWEPA and

the village especially with there is no mobile telephone network coverage.

2. Barefoot College – to provide the 6-month training, to demystify the solar

technology for Tarihing to learn and thereafter transfer to other women in her

kampung.

3. Bomba Sabah – provided the helicopter and man power to air-lift and transport

the solar equipment from Kota Marudu to Kg. Sonsogon Magandai. Total of 4

flights.

4. Daily Express – the official Media Partner who has exclusivity to cover this project

and who has already published numerous articles and pictures in the newspaper,

often full-page stories, since the project began.

5. Government –

a. the District Office, to be informed of this project and to provide support

and assistance in the verification of SWEPA to the villagers that SWEPA is a

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legitimate NGO and is sincere in implementing this project. Also to provide

other logistic support and assistance during the Launch of the project in

May 2014.

b. The Federal Government, the Ministry of Energy, Green Technology &

Water also provided support to launch this project.

c. The Government of India under their ITEC Visa, sponsored the Visa and

airfare for Tarihing. The High Commission of India in Kuala Lumpur has

pledged to support another 2 grandmothers in September 2015 for

another 6-months’ training at Barefoot College.

6. Grandis Hotel – sponsored the venue and lunch for the Home-Coming Reception

for Tarihing on 17th March 2015.

7. PACOS Trust – who have strong ties to the rural communities and who has signed

a MOU with SWEPA to take over the 5 year monitoring of the project once all

installations have been completed.

8. Raleigh International - who provided 3 groups of volunteers from July to August

2014 to build the Rural Electronic Workshop in the village. The volunteers stayed

at the village for 8 weeks and mingled with the villagers. The completed building

was a proud community project for the village.

9. Sabah Credit Corporation – who provided funds for the building materials for the

Rural Electronic Workshop.

10. Small Grants Program (SGP) GEF – who provided the initial funding of

US$50,000.00.

11. Individuals –

a. Casey Leong – who started and maintains the blog for this project.

b. Louis Pang (Studio) – who had a charity drive during Mother’s Day 2014

and raised more than RM3,000.00 for this project which he donated

immediately to SWEPA.

c. Jennifer Anjik – who was previously involved in the building and setting

up of a kindergarten in Kg. Sonsogon Magandai, and who offered her

home to the grandmothers when they visited Kota Kinabalu to have their

passports made and vaccinations done.

d. Other SWEPA members and individuals who have donated cash or their

time to this project.

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What’s Next

A. The Village Solar Committee has been set up comprising 8 people :

1. Barefoot Solar Engineer, Tarihing

2. Chairwoman, Boyokot

3. Treasurer, Lina

4. Secretary, Michael

5. Internal Auditor

6. Member in charge of REW

7. Installer

8. Advisor, Ketua Kampung Kayak Ontol.

The majority of the villagers have agreed to pay RM15.00 per month for the solar panel set

and lanterns. The committee will be responsible to collect the monthly fees.

B. One grandmother from Kg. Sonsogon Magandai will be selected to go to India in

September 2015.

C. The Official Launch of the SWEPA Barefoot Solar Project’s Lighting of 100 Homes,

targeted in August, 2015.

As at June 2015