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The institution, scheduled to open this summer in Bamako,
Mali's capital, will try to give African engineers and
entrepreneurs the skills needed to develop solar power. European
experts will help supply training equipment and programs.
The academy will aim to teach people how to install and maintain
solar-powered electricity systems as well as micro grids, "which
are really taking off in rural Africa", Akon Lighting Africa
said.
Africa has 320 days of sunshine a year, the organization said in
a statement, so harnessing solar energy is an ideal way to
enable those without electricity to get it.
“We have the sun and innovative technologies to bring
electricity to homes and communities. We now need to consolidate
African expertise," said Samba Baithily, who founded Akon
Lighting Africa with Akon and Thione Niang.
Seventy percent of Africans are under 35, and creating
sustainable jobs is vital, the group said, so investing in solar
power for the future can help in more ways than one.
“We expect the Africans who graduate from this center to devise
new, innovative, technical solutions,” said Niang. "With this
Academy, we can capitalize on Akon Lighting Africa and go
further."
The group announced the launch of the academy at the second
United Nations Sustainable Energy for All Forum in New York
(Reporting By Joseph D'Urso; Editing by Tim Pearce)
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