On 22nd April 2010 the Embassy signed an Addendum to the current Agreement with Tanzania Traditional Energy and Environment Development Organization (TaTEDO). TaTEDO is a Tanzanian NGO aiming to ‘enhance access to modern energy technologies and services for consumptive and productive use, in households, small medium enterprises and social service centers’.
Norway has supported TaTEDO over the last 3,5 years through the programme called: ‘Integrated Modern Energy Services for Sustainable Development and Poverty Reduction’. The support amounts to approximately USD 1,7 million, and the programme is being implemented in 8 regions, and 19 districts around Tanzania.
Hivos (Humanist Institute for Cooperation with Developing Countries – from the Netherlands) is another partner to TaTEDO, providing support to the procurement and installation of a number of Multipurpose Energy Service Centres (MPESCs); a decentralised rural energy system, providing electricity to rural areas of Tanzania. These MPESCs are run by using solar power systems, or by engines that run using diesel or bio-fuel (i.e. from Jatropha).
The project is expected to benefit 55,000 rural households, 500 rural micro-enterprises in particular women enterprises, 22 village technicians and artisans, 300 operators of MPESCs, 150 rural social service centres including schools and health centres and 5,000 existing and potential farmers of Jatropha.
The Norwegian Embassy will now be a co-sponsor of this project. It is complementary to the ongoing Norwegian support to TaTEDO, particularly the effort to provide electricity to rural areas. This project will assist in empowering and enabling the rural population in rural areas to improve their living standards.
The Embassy therefore on 22nd April 2010 decided to provide an additional Euro 131 108 (approximately NOK 1,1 million) to secure TaTEDOs funding needs for the project.
For more information about TaTEDO (www.tatedo.org).