When Africa!Ignite provided solar lights and solar water disinfection systems to households in the Hlabisa and Mtubatuba Municipalities in northern KwaZulu-Natal, our highly enthusiastic, hands-on installation team was mostly Dutch and came from all over the world.

Managers of Dutch global giant VOPAK, the world's largest fluids storage company, came from different countries to volunteer on the project, as part of a leadership development programme. They climbed on roofs, slid down river banks and loved it all. As Margreeth Servais wrote: ‘For us it was an experience for life. I'm sure that nobody will ever forget this for the rest of his/her life. The people of KwaZulu-Natal will be in my heart forever.'

Africa!Ignite installed solar technologies in 20 households who do not have access to running water or electricity and are employing four previously unemployed youths to support and monitor the use of the technologies. The programme aims to improve the health and quality of life of deep-rural communities and is funded by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, as a way to test and promote the use of solar energies in rural KwaZulu-Natal.

For the households who participate in this programme, access to clean drinking water and solar lighting is life changing. Neighbours are noticing and they also want these technologies. Within one month of the installation of the solar systems (panels, bulbs and cell chargers), youths had already taken orders for more than 500. This creates huge for youths across rural KwaZulu-Natal to become ‘village entrepreneurs' selling solar technologies at a profit.