Mount Kenya Energy Project: The Lazola 3 Solar Box Cooker

One of the major goals of our organization is to create environmental awareness among the population and to provide appropriate technologies and education so people can take action.

Besides the promotion of tree planting and the use of fuel-efficient stoves along with heat-retention devices, we want to introduce solar cookers – particularly in sun-rich areas where people experience fuel shortages and rising prices of firewood, charcoal and gas.

We have decided to promote solar box cookers because this type of cooker is appropriate to the types of food and the cooking methods used in many parts of Kenya. The Lazola 3 in particular shows good performance and can last for many years as it is made of galvanized metal. It can be manufactured with a minimum of machines and hand tools which are available in the country. Most of the required materials can be purchased locally.

Mugo´s daughter Gakii was among the first to test the Lazola. She does Home Economics at her school and took the chance to apply what she had learned while she was on home leave. She cooked ugali (stiff maize porridge), maize and beans, rice and vegetables and baked bread and muffins. Gakii and the Lazola cooker passed all tests with flying colours and everybody who tasted the food was delighted.


Gakii prepares maize and beans ...

... and puts them in the Lazola.

The Githeri is ready.

The Lazola is cooking while the women are resting.

The solar cooked food is ready ...

... and everybody enjoys it.

The next person to test the cooker was Ivonne, one of our board members. After she had practiced for some time, she took the Lazola 3 to the Ganga Exhibition, an important agricultural show in Maara district which was held on September 28^th. She was accompanied by Micheni and Jane, the chairlady of the Gaketha group. The Lazola cooker received a lot of attention and positive feedback from exhibition visitors.

Ivonne explains how the solar cooker works as the County Commissioner, the District Agricultural Officer and the Assistant Minister of Agriculture in the government of Kenya are listening attentively.

Tasty solar food!

Micheni talks about medicinal herbs.

The next opportunity to promote solar cooking was at the Meru South Exhibition on October 11^th. This time our board member Christine joined the others. The exhibition was even bigger than the one at Ganga and had government officials from Nairobi visiting.