Solar powered water pumping in refugee camps: lessons learnt from East and Horn of Africa

Fuel powered boreholes are often the only option to provide potable water in refugee camps in East and Horn of Africa (EHA). Large fuel consumption, camp operations over decades and limited funding contribute to the fact that this type of water supply may not be sustainable. In recent years, several boreholes in refugee camps in EHA were equipped with solar powered water pumping systems to assess the feasibility of this alternative energy source. It could be shown that solar systems are a valuable option to replace or enhance fuel powered systems, and that higher investment costs of solar systems are outweighed by the reduction of fuel costs.