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When armed conflicts hit in 2008 and 2009, many were evacuated to Sitio Lumpang in the Maguidanao province of Mindanao, Philippines. Through the years, many have settled down and carved out a home for themselves. They send their children to nearby schools. This community is now inhabited by a mixture of families who were evacuees in the past, together with the natives of the land.
Today, another crisis has hit these homes, this time in terms of a power crisis. With reports of overdependence on coal and uncontrolled consumer-unfriendly contracts between private power plants and local distributors, power costs have doubled across the region from P6/kWh in 2016 to P12/kWh in 2022. Costs have only worsened due to the ongoing Ukraine war and Cagayan de Oro-based Institute of Power Sector Economics noted an average 20.5% increase in the power rates of all distribution utilities in Mindanao from 2016 to 2020 alone.
For the multiple families entrenched in poverty who are already struggling to make a living in an area rife with instability and questionable security, this mounting power crisis means that many are unable to afford electrical power. With the unavailability of electrical electric power and the insufficient funds to purchase candles, many families spend nights in pitch black darkness as seen in the story of Akmad and Noria Bandala.
The Bandala family could only afford enough candles to last through their family dinners which meant that daily activities after such as washing dishes in the communal deep well and walking to the communal toilet at night proved to be onerous. Moreover, activities like doing homework in the evening had to be ceased altogether, affecting the academics of the Bandela children. What some in more privileged societies may see as a small and insignificant item is a precious gift for these needy households.
“Our children were having a hard time doing their homework in the evening. Sometimes, they had to stop doing their homework because we did not have light and the money for buying sufficient candles. The candle that we buy only lasts for our daily dinner-time together. It was so hard to wash the dishes in the communal deep well and it was also a big problem to walk to the communal toilet at night.”
“It was a delight to our family when we received the Solar Lamp! Now, the children can continue in their studies even until midnight if needed. My daughter Alwina, who has joined the ‘Pressed Flower Livelihood Program’ in our village, can continue working on her flowers at night. This way, she can earn extra money to support her needs at school. The Solar Lamp may be just a small thing, but it is a precious gift for our family.”
“Thank you so much for giving light to our dark situation. We thank God because you have chosen to help our family. We thank God for all your good hearts to help needy families like ours. We pray that God blesses you with abundance and good health so that you can help more families. Thank you so much.” - Akmad & Noria Bandala
Another instance of the lights improving one's livelihood is through the story of widow Latipa G. Katuwal who makes a living by making and selling cooking oil from coconuts.
Previously, she had to sacrifice her own oil to make an improvised lamp which aids her in carrying out her nightly routine of preparing her bed. The improvised lamp is unstable and would often only last for a few minutes, leaving her shrouded in darkness for the rest of the night. With the gift of the solar lamp, she now has sufficient light to tide through darkened nights in a consistent and fuss-free manner, only needing to charge up the device during the day.
“I am a widow and I am live alone in my small hut. I earn my living by making cooking oil from coconuts. I use the small attached light in a gas lighter to give a little light to my house and to make another light when I prepare my bed at night. For this, I pour a small amount of oil into a bowl, put the cotton ball, and ignite a light. It could last for a few minutes, good enough to fix my bed.”
“I am happy now because I finally have a Solar Lamp without spending my hard-earned money from the oil I make. I just need to put this solar device under the Sun during the daytime and I will have light in the dark nights. I won’t need to use my oil for the improvised lamp. Instead, I could sell it for food.”
“Thank you so much to all who have donated the Solar Lamps to our community. Because of this, many of us now have light in our homes. Typhoons may arrive, but these Solar Lamps will remain inside our homes to provide us some comfort. I wish you all have a long life so that you may be able to help more families, like us!” - Latipa G. Katuwal
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