This week’s most important headlines out of and about Africa.
In this week’s news, Burundi refugees were offered university education in Rwanda, Ethiopian Electric Power signed deals with neighboring countries, and Morocco’s mosques transitioned to solar energy.
Rwanda offers university education for Burundian refugees
Gelllilla Gebre-Michael | Africa Agenda
Burundian school girls waiting for class to start.
Mahama houses the largest Burundian refugee camp in Rwanda. Those that escaped from violence in Burundi were unable to finish their higher education journey. Rwanda has opened its higher education institutions to the refugees and is also providing basic school necessities such as clothes, mattresses, soaps, beddings, shoes, and scholastic materials.
Access to higher education is limited for Burundian refugees in Rwanda. For those who have completed their high school education or in the middle of their tertiary journey, English lessons are provided. Mahama camp currently hosts more than 49,000 refugees.
Ethiopian Electric Power to foster economic integration
Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) is a publicly-traded company that seeks to engage in the development of geothermal resources and the construction of power plants. The company currently has agreements with Djibouti, Kenya, and Sudan. EEP is currently underway with signing a 400 megawatts purchase agreement with Tanzania.
Ethiopia’s exportation of energy has drawn support from Japan’s Toshiba Corporation. Toshiba seeks to contribute to projects in Ethiopia. The company will assist to develop and manufacture major equipment, create operation and management guidelines, cooperating in personnel development, and starting a waste heat utilization business. The development of geothermal power will assist Ethiopia in increasing its’ generating capacity.
Morocco’s Green Mosques program provides solar energy for all mosques in the kingdom
Gelllilla Gebre-Michael | Africa Agenda
One of the 15,000 mosques is expected to run completely on solar energy.
Morocco launched the Green Mosques program two years ago in hopes of saving the kingdom money. The program seeks to raise awareness of renewable energy in the 15,000 mosques in the kingdom. Morocco has one of the largest mosques in the world. Morocco seeks to provide all mosques with LED lighting, photovoltaic systems, and solar water heaters. The agency responsible for paying the mosques’ energy bills is the Moroccan Ministry of Religious Affairs.
