Solar technology is allowing more medical procedures to take place at night in rural clinics in Zimbabwe, thanks to the DFID Frontier Tech Livestreaming programme. This includes five babies who were born at night under solar-powered lights in June in the Jari and Kamhonde districts in Mashonaland West province. Some of the birthing wards in these districts were previously lit by candlelight.

This result is thanks to two solar panel systems which were installed at these clinics. The solar technology being utilised is ‘smart’, meaning it can be controlled according to priority of need, and uses lithium battery technology to store energy when the sun isn’t shining. The systems use an innovative solar enabler technology, provided by partners Africa Power Storage, that allows smart monitoring of electricity usage so that health clinics can monitor their energy needs and make better use of the energy available.

Frontier Technology Livestreaming is a three-year programme designed to help DFID apply frontier technologies to development challenges.