Social entrepreneur Illac Diaz is seeking partners from the private sector for a new project that can serve the power needs of disaster-hit areas which still do not have electricity.
Diaz, executive director and founder of MyShelter Foundation, said he is looking for corporate sponsors that can help him expand the rollout of solar pedestrian lights that also function as mobile chargers.
The solar-powered street light is made up of an ordinary PVC pipe that has a solar panel installed on top of it. During the day when the lamp is not lit up, an electricity outlet located at the near bottom part of the pole can be used to charge cellphones and laptop computers.
Diaz, who has received various recognitions for his social entrepreneurship, said his foundation intends to add more to the 3,500 solar street lights already installed in relocation centers.
The solar pedestrian lamps is meant to complement the solar-powered night lights, which MyShelter Foundation is also set to deploy in the homes ravaged by the by the 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Central Visayas and by Typhoon Yolanda in Eastern Visayas.
About 1,000 solar night lights are set to be dispatched by MyShelter Foundation, together with Tesda, to typhoon-devastated Tacloban City in earthquake-hit areas in Bohol and Cebu.
About 80 to 90 volunteers from the University of Sto. Tomas, Malayan College, and Tesda?s Women?s Center and Persons with Disabilities built the solar night lights at the Tesda pavilion in Taguig City.
?Even the poorest of Filipinos can have a solution to lack of lighting, even without electricity,? Diaz said. ?We cannot just rely on imported, patented and expensive solar lights or disaster technologies.?
He said solar night lights do not require expensive equipment because they could be made using simple circuits.
Solar-powered generators
Meanwhile, residents unable to wait anymore for the restoration of electricity supply are now buying solar-powered generators to light up their homes and recharge their gadgets.
Solar-powered generators, with an output of 300 watts, are sold at P30,000 each. The generator is capable of powering electric fans and charging cellular phones and laptops.
A unit which is capable of generating 600 watts is priced at P60,000.
Gil John Dequitado, salesperson of Sheridan Marketing, said the solar-powered generators are capable of storing up to 12 hours worth of charge which can power laptops, television sets, radios, and cellphones for the same length of time.
He said the product is easy to maintain as users only need to expose the panels to the sunlight to recharge the unit. ? with reports from PNA
