Q1 : You  have single handedly revolutionized the sustainable energy future of  Bangladesh.  Kindly elaborate on your Grameen  Shakti organization and the technical training you are providing women in harnessing solar power .   How did you visualize all this and how did you implement it . I understand you are linked with Grameen Bank  and micro-credit, but how did you generate micro-credit to finance the solar energy project  ?

 Answer :    I created  Grameen Shakti  to provide the rural people with efficient and clean energy  so that they can improve their quality of life and generate income . My life long experience with rural people has given me faith  in their  resilience ,   innovativeness to meet any challenges or  seize any opportunity coming their way .  I  was confident that   renewable energy would be accepted by the rural people ,  if we could set up a proper model on   the ground level.  I saw  that rural people were left out of many development activities because they lacked access to modern and efficient energy . 

Currently , Grameen Shakti is one of the largest and fastest growing renewable energy companies in the world with 5000 engineers in 700 rural offices,  all over Bangladesh .  We have  installed over 280, 000  Solar Home Systems ( SHS ) , 7000 biogas plants and 40, 000  Improved Cooking Stoves .   Initiated in 1996 ,  Grameen Shakti has successfully blended an innovative installment based credit system with effective  grassroots after sales service , quality control  and other consumer friendly options to male renewable energy technologies attractive to the rural people . 

Women have always been one of our  main focus because it is they who suffer most from energy crisis .  We also took special initiative to  incorporate women engineers among our staff .  Over the years ,  we have seen that women engineers were very efficient when assembling and repairing electronics .   We also saw that   it was the  women who were responsible for the household . Many time when our engineers went to visit client’s  homes, they would find out that men folk were not at home  .  We felt that  women would more comfortable in dealing with women technicians .

Therefore,  we came out with an idea to train rural women as solar technicians who would assemble , repair  solar accessories as well be responsible for  after sales services , especially during  post warranty period .  We would also train women from solar user homes to take care of their systems .  We have set up  45 Grameen Technology Centers to train 5000 rural women  as Solar Technicians and 50, 000  women from user families on simple trouble shooting.           

Yes ,  I am the Deputy Managing Director  of  Grameen Bank ,  however  Grameen Shakti is a separate organization which does not depend on Grameen Bank for financing.   Neither does it follow the principles of micro-credit such as group formation ,  staggered loans , weekly payments etc .  We would like to call our  financial model  an innovative installment based credit system suitable for the rural people .  We started with Grameen Shakti with  small grants from different donors and then scaled up our program with a long term soft loan from IFC .            
 
Q2 : Was it difficult for you to convince women to come forward and take the initiative ?  What problems did you encounter ? 

 Answer : Our Grameen Technology Centers are managed by women engineers who stay in the rural areas .  Therefore at first it was quite challenging to  recruit women engineers who were willing to stay in the rural areas , away from their parent homes .   However ,  we provided the women engineers with secure abode and enough  job satisfaction so that their parents became    proud of their daughters who were serving  in the rural areas to empower other women . Our engineers interacting with rural women  and teaching them  to become efficient technicians .  

Similarly,   during the first six months ,  recruiting rural women for the trainings was a  slow process .  However when the first few batches  came out and became known  in their community for their skills with Solar Home Systems ,  the number of interested  women began to increase . Many of our trained technicians are earning around  Tk  9000 per month   and this has also created a lot of interest  in  the rural communities .     

Q3 You have  also diversified in biogas generation ,  organic fertilizer and providing young men  the opportunity to make biogas cookers .  Can you also elaborate on this  and how this ties up with solar energy programme ?      

 Answer : Bangladesh  enjoys sunshine most of time  . That is why we started our program with Solar  PV technology . Later we have diversified into other  renewable  energy  technologies and related technologies such as Improved Cooking Stoves to serve the various needs of the rural people .  

I started our Biogas Program in 2005 and Improved Cooking Stove Program in 2006.  Both of these programs are thriving. We decided to promote biogas plants because most farmers own few livestock and poultry sector is an emerging business in Bangladesh .Biogas technology is very appropriate for rural areas because it converts cow dung or poultry dropping into cooking gas, light and slurry, which is a very good organic fertilizer.  Biogas technology is paving the way to a Green Economy and transforming Waste into Wealth for the rural people. This technology is helping rural farmers with few livestock to reduce their fuel cost, enjoy bright hazak light as well as have organic fertilizers from slurry.  Larger sized biogas plant owners are also making extra income through giving connection to neighbours – many are also producing electricity.  Biogas plants are especially boons for poultry owners who can rid of poultry wastes especially the bad smell and at the same time sell biogas and slurry to others. Neighbours, who used to complain about the bad smell, now become their clients, buying biogas from them. For instance, the owners of a 2000 bird  poultry farm bought  a  9m3  biogas plant costing Tk. 39,000  through a Tk. 10, 000 deposit and  monthly payments of Tk.  1300 for two years.  The biogas supplies the owners with cooking fuel and also an electric generator for three hours per day. In addition,  biogas is sold to ten neighbouring families giving an income of Tk. 3900 per month  which is three times the monthly payments.   The owners of this farm also estimated that their improved vegetable production from the slurry increased their income by Tk.  7000 per month  with reduced fertilizer costs too .  This way,  biogas technology is boosting livestock and agro businesses and helping to increase food security in Bangladesh. 

I took up our Improved Cooking Stove Program in order to protect our mothers and sisters from indoor air pollution.  Improved Cooking Stoves are one of the cheapest means to protect women and children from in-door air pollution, which is a major killer in developing countries.  The improved stoves reduce wood use by about 50% saving time and money. Improved Cooking Stoves is helping rural families to increase savings and capital,   protect their health and save the environment at the same time. It is no wonder that   rural women who are the managers of their homes and household finance are showing growing interest in improved stoves. We are constructing  per month  double of the number of stoves, we constructed last year.    Within last six months ,   Improved stoves construction has grown more than 171%.

Q4 : On a day to day basis ,  how did you find the inspiration to go on with a dream you had  despite all the infrastructural hurdles and other red tape?        

 Answer : I have devoted most of life to finding sustainable market based solutions to the social and economic problems faced by the rural people .  I feel it is my moral responsibility   to provide alternatives to the rural  people so that they can improve their lives and attain their full  potential  .  I  dream of Bangladesh  as a country of  Green Energy where millions of people escaped threats of climate change and are leading productive  and sustainable lives . This dream  is what keeps me going  on a day to day basis .

Q5: You  model could be used in other third world countries grappling with poverty and energy crisis ?  

 Answer : Yes ,  our model can be adapted in other countries dealing with poverty and energy crisis .  The  central lessons other countries can learn from Grameen Shakti  include the following – a  successful  Renewable energy technology  Program should have the following key elements :

• Tapping into local  social and market forces to create  sustainable programs 
•  Focusing on energy savings ,  and income generations instead  of  subsidies .  for example ,  through  Grameen Shakti ,  a rural customer can install a Solar Home System at the same cost as kerosene .     This creates a huge incentive for installing Solar Home Systems

• Ensuring effective after sales service and quality ,  through training of users ,  creation of local service providers etc
• Focusing on women  and children  as an active agents of change
• Making the technology an integral part of social and business activities such as creation of new jobs ,  businesses ,  installing   renewables in schools ,  development organizations etc .

Grameen Shakti has broken the myth that renewable energy technologies are not appropriate for the rural  people   on a mass scale .  Grameen Shakti has demonstrated that if an appropriate business model is followed ,  renewable energy technologies can bring revolutionary changes in the life of rural people, not only that RET is  appropriate for all-  rich or poor , rural or urban. .  Our model is a positive example of what one can do if one set one’s  heart and minds to finding solutions , however the model should not be imitated blindly .

Q6 : Can you describe the difference this project has made to the lives of women and their families ?

 Answer : More than two million rural people have benefited from our programs.  Our programs have  brought    light ,  income , health and especially  hope and better opportunities to the  rural people by showing  them a way  out of energy poverty.  Our programs are replacing kerosene ,  reducing  Co2  emissions , deforestations,   indoor pollution, creating rural based green jobs ,  facilitating  health care and education  .  Our programs have brought  triple bottom lines  benefits  : social , economical and environmental  touching all aspects of rural life .

However the biggest beneficiaries of our programs are women and children . Women have been rescued from household drudgery ,     in door  air pollution and given the opportunity to connect with the outside world .   A  rural woman can work under the bright light of  Solar Home System ,  watch solar power televisions     and cook on an Improved Cooking Stove in a smoke-free kitchen .    She can also take part in income generating activities after dusk .   Women are happy because their children do have to live in smoke filled rooms,  the  children  can  study under solar light ,  watch televisions etc

Most Importantly ,   Grameen Shakti is creating Green Jobs for women in the rural areas .  We have set up 45  Grameen Technology Centers in the rural areas to train nearly 2000 rural  women as  Solar technicians .  These women are assembling solar accessories ,   marketing and repairing Solar Home Systems for their communities .   We have also trained rural women as Improved Cooking Stoves technicians .   By creating Green Jobs for women ,    Grameen Shakti  is not only setting a positive example of  women contribution and achievement in the society , but also rescuing women from dowry ,  illegal immigration ,  untimely death    etc .   Our trained technicians have become respected members of the society ,  their hard earned income  bringing their families out of poverty ,  augmenting their husband’s  income , helping the education of their children and   younger brothers and sisters.  

Q7 :  You are not new to awards  and honours , having received the alternative Nobel prize before this , but tell me how you felt receiving   the Zayed Future Energy Prize ,  the very first they awarded in 2008.  How have you utilized the amount that you received?    

 Answer : I  felt overwhelmed  by the great honour bought to me and my country .   It was special acknowledgement of the creativity and resilience  of  our people without whom our program would  not have succeeded. It was the rural people who accepted renewable energy technology in large number to use it to improve their lives and take part in income generating activities . This prize was  a moral boost, which strengthened  my resolve to make renewable energy technology a part of life of the common people especially the rural people .  My dream is to reach 75% of Bangladeshis with renewable energy technologies by 2015.  

Q8 : What is your message to others seeking to find sustainable energy resources and how can you help ? 

I always encourage other interested people and organizations   to go forward with their initiatives and dreams .  I especially enjoy talking to students as they are our future .  They have the imagination and ability to set up a new world order which is based on renewable energy instead of fossil fuel 

Many organizations and interns are visiting Grameen Shakti to see how we operate .  We have also organized some workshops and seminars to disseminate the Grameen Shakti model .  However I strongly believe that each individual and organization has to find its own way to set  up sustainable models , depending on the context of their country and environment .   Grameen Shakti can only be an positive example in this regard ,  but it should not be blindly imitated .

Q9 :  What other projects you are working on and is the government of Bangladesh supporting you ? 

 Answer : Our Government has recently passed the National Renewable Energy Policy .  We are looking forward to its implementation .  All tax/ VAT has been removed off Solar Panels .  Our Central Bank  has created  Tk 200 crore special fund to promote solar and biogas technology both in the rural and urban areas .  Our Government is also very much interested to open a solar panel manufacturing factory in Bangladesh .

We  are considering  pilot testing a number of new  initiatives to provide more benefits to rural people and extend this benefit to the urban people .  For the rural people ,  these new initiatives include pilot testing solar pumps ,  constructing large sized biogas plants and   putting the gas into cylinders .  This will help  to extend biogas facilities to those who have no  biogas plants , not only that these gas would be able to run vehicles ,   pumps and other appliances .   For the urban people ,   we  plan to construct  large sized biogas plants for converting municipality wastes in to  gas , electricity .  This will help to get rid of wastes and at the same time meet the  needs of    gas and electricity of the urban dwellers .  We are   discussing with different municipality authorities in this regard.   We are   also actively thinking of  installing  solar panels on rooftops of  urban building  and transmitting  the extra electricity to  the grid.  Our  engineers  are already designing different  packages which will help to meet the basic needs  (  fans ,  lights etc )  of  urban dwellers during  load shading , while the   extra electricity would be transmitted to the grid  during other times .  We have already installed a  Solar Energy System in a posh urban restaurant and will also soon install a system in a  Pizza Hut . We are  also in the process of  taking up a  project to power mobile phone base stations with solar technology .   Another  of our new initiative  is to  promote   solar heaters in  hospitals and clinics in both rural and urban  areas.  

Q10 : Any other issues you might want to talk about –things that have made a difference to the lives of the people touched by your enterprising spirit – any anecdotes about some families , any particular memories you have had ?   

 Answer : It always give me pleasure to see a rural family is using solar , biogas or Improved Cooking Stoves  to change their lives and the lives of their community .   I always enjoy my field visits .   If one goes to Sandiwp ,  an isolated island , one can see many umbrellas  with Grameen Shakti logos .  This is a symbol of what we have achieved in winning the hearts and minds of the rural people .  In many rural market places ,  one can see rows of shops lighted by solar .  

I get the greatest pleasure to listening to the stories of women entrepreneurs who have been helped by us to earn an income and give a new meaning to their lives .  Before becoming a  Solar Entrepreneur ,  they had  hand to mouth lives , with no self respect ,  no social status  and now they are helping their parents , their brothers and sisters .   Many of them are also continuing their own education .           

 Q11 : At the end of the day when you place  your head on the pillow , is it with great satisfaction of having done something very meaningful or with a sense of enormity of the jobs yet to be completed ?      

 Answer : I am a  very positive person  and have a very optimistic vision of the future .   I look back at  the challenges we have surmounted to achieve what we have achieved and use this as a touch stone  to look at the challenges we are facing now and  what we can do to solve these challenges .   I believe in dreaming a positive future ,  because without dreams , there cannot be any reality .