Renewable Energy in Somaliland

Abdirahman Rayale

Bachelor’s Thesis

Degree Programme in Sustainable Coastal

Management

Raseborg 2017

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BACHELOR’S THESIS
Author: Abdirahman Rayale
Degree Programme: Sustainable Coastal Management

Title: Renewable Energy in Somaliland

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Date: 8.05.2017 Number of Pages: 26
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Summary

The objective of my thesis is to shed a light over the current condition of Somaliland energy
situation. The demand and the supply of the electricity for lighting and biomass using for cooking
will be studied. Also, the price of the energy as whole. Surprisingly, one of the poorest country in
the world pay the highest electricity tariffs.

The research that I have done was reading books, reports and case studies about renewable energy,
in order to get alternative solutions for Somaliland energy deficiency. Also, comparing the energy
sources and tariffs Somaliland to neighboring countries.

The results show that natural resources endowment in Somaliland is huge. Especially, the solar
energy, wind energy, tidal and waves. The potential power in Somaliland can be sufficient for the
whole country without using any other source of energy.
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Language: English Key words: Renewable energy, solar, wind, biomass, charcoal, sustainable

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Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................................................... 2

INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................... 3
1.1 OBJECTIVES ........................................................................................................................... 4
1.2 RESEARCH QUESTION ............................................................................................................ 4
1.3 METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................................... 4
1.4 TARGET GROUP ...................................................................................................................... 4

2.0 SOMALILAND ENERGY IN GENERAL ..................................................................................... 5

2.1 COMMERCIAL ........................................................................................................................ 5
2.2 HOUSEHOLD .......................................................................................................................... 5
2.3 ENERGY SUPPLY AND DEMAND ............................................................................................. 6
2.4 ENERGY PRICE ....................................................................................................................... 7
2.5 COMPARING SOMALIA’S ELECTRICITY TARIFF TO NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES ETHIOPIA AND
KENYA ........................................................................................................................................ 8
2.6 ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS CAUSED BY CHARCOAL AND DIESEL GENERATORS ................... 9
2.7 SOCIAL IMPACT OF ENERGY ................................................................................................... 9
2.8 CURRENT ECONOMIC IMPACT .............................................................................................. 10
2.9 CURRENT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ................................................................................... 10

3.0 POTENTIAL RENEWABLE ENERGY IN SOMALILAND .................................................... 11

3.1 SUSTAINABLE STRATEGIES .................................................................................................. 11
3.2 SOLAR ENERGY .................................................................................................................... 12
3.4 WIND AND SOLAR ENERGY ENDOWMENT OF SOMALILAND ................................................. 14

4.0 RENEWABLE ENERGY IMPACT ............................................................................................ 15

4.1 ECONOMIC IMPACT .............................................................................................................. 15
4.2 SOCIAL IMPACT ................................................................................................................... 16
4.3 ENVIRONMENT IMPACT ....................................................................................................... 17

5.0 SWOT ANALYSIS...................................................................................................................... 17

5.1 SWOT ANALYSIS .................................................................................................................. 17
5.2 STRENGTHS ......................................................................................................................... 17
5.3 WEAKNESSES ...................................................................................................................... 18
5.4 OPPORTUNITY...................................................................................................................... 18
5.5 THREAT ............................................................................................................................... 19

6.0 RENEWABLE ENERGY CASE STUDIES ............................................................................... 20

6.1 CASE 1: BERBERA HOSPITAL................................................................................................ 20
6.2 CASE 2: HORN RENEWABLE ENERGY COMPANY-KAAFI SOLAR .......................................... 21

7.0 CONCLUSIONS .......................................................................................................................... 22

REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................. 23

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Introduction

Somaliland was a British protectorate part of Somalia. It became independent in 26 June 1960. The
world has recognized it. After four days the Italian protectorate was united with Somaliland and they
formed Somalia. In 1991, after the collapse of Somalia central government, Somaliland has declared
its independence from Somalia. Since that time Somaliland has been struggling to gain international
recognition.

Somaliland’s electricity networks are characterized by extremely high price, high wastage grids, poor
quality, and lack of reliability and outages of power. On the ground, businesses rely on their own
generators to manage the regular power outages. In urban areas of Somaliland 68% of households
and 96% of businesses have some kind of access to electricity, while ruler electricity is inexistent.
The majority of Somaliland’s population live in rural areas. This is a high proportion when we
compare to Sub-Saharan countries in Africa where 57.7% households typically have access to
electricity. (World bank, 2012).
Somaliland's energy production currently relies almost exclusively on diesel generators, with access
to electricity being restricted because of high prices to people with middle to high incomes and living
in urban to peri/urban areas. Currently poor people with nomadic traditions and/or who live in the
countryside have little, and in many cases, no access to any kind of electricity. Electricity currently
produced from diesel generators is used mostly for lighting and cooling, the energy used for cooking
mostly comes from charcoal, which has severe impacts to the environment.

Somaliland is a country that receives approximately 12 hours of sunlight per day, this enormous
capacity for solar energy gives the possibility to produce sufficient electricity through photovoltaic
solar panels that would meet the needs of households and businesses. Unfortunately, although the
demand for electricity is high, the supply of electricity from renewable sources such as photovoltaic
solar panels is very low. In some cases, people are struggling to find alternative sources of energy
other than diesel generators.

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1.1 Objectives
The aim of this thesis is to determine the viability for the production and supply of clean, self-
sufficient and sustainable energy in Somaliland from the use of renewable energy solutions. In
addition, an objective is to demonstrate that by using a sustainable way of producing energy can be a
solution to many environmental issues like deforestation, soil degradation, and social issues such as
barriers to the availability of sufficient energy for lower socioeconomic parts of society. This thesis
will indicate the direct and indirect opportunities of renewable energy production and at the same
time, describe direct and indirect problems caused by generation of energy from fossil fuels.

1.2 Research question

What demand for renewable energy is there in Somaliland, who could be the sources of investment,
and is there a viable business opportunity for the development of renewable energy .The second part
of the research question is to evaluate how the use of renewable energy will influence the macro
economy of the Somaliland, how it will provide social benefits and to what extent will it save the
environment.

1.3 Methodology
SWOT analysis will be used in order to analyse both the advantages and disadvantages of differing
methods of energy production in Somaliland with the methodology of Environmental Impact
Assessment also being used. The data used in this thesis secondary data sources. It means, I did not
make any survey or direct questions to the target group.

1.4 Target group

The target group will be power suppliers and customers in Somaliland.

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2.0 Somaliland energy in general

Scarcity of supply when it comes to energy in Somaliland is obvious in almost every sector of
business and society. Energy use is very low compared to the world standards and it was estimated at
just 200 to 280 kgoe ( Kilogram of oil equivalent) per capita per year, with most being biomass based
fuels (Ministry of energy and minerals 2010). When we compare to Finland there is huge difference.
The total consumption of energy per capita in Finland is 5.9 toe (Tonne of oil equivalent)
(tilastokeskus, 2015). This gives a good indication of the deficiencies of energy supply in Somaliland.

2.1 Commercial
All sectors of business suffer from a shortage of electricity which in turn has caused many factories
to close because of insufficient energy supply. The commercial electricity demand is high in
Somaliland but the current supply is very low and unreliable. According to the World Bank 2012,
poor reliability of energy supply is a key problem for developing countries in the sub-Saharan region,
which includes Somaliland. According to World Bank 2012 Enterprise Surveys indicates that
managers of 41 Sub-Saharan economies are concerned with lack of electricity supply which
undermines their productivity and investments. The report shows that the African firms lost 5% of
their sales because of deficiency of electricity (World Bank, 2012). Overall economy, the cost of
electricity shortages can rise Africa’s GDP with 2 % (World Bank, 2012). In Somaliland, currently
power outages are experienced on average 56 days per year, which causes business losses from 6%
up to 20% (Ministry of Mineral and Energy Somaliland, 2010). These continual losses at such a high
rate exacerbate social problems such as unemployment, poverty etc.

2.2 Household
On a household level, the access to energy is low and unreliable with insufficient capacity of supply
over demand. According to the ministry of energy 68% of urban and peri-urban residents have access
to power supply (National Development Plan, 2012-2016). On the other hand, 32% of the urban
population have no access for electricity and in the country side 100% of the population has no access
of electricity (National Development Plan, 2012-2016). People use electricity for light and home
appliances such as television, mobile charging, and cooling. People with no access to electricity use
kerosene for light.

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In developing countries electricity is used only for lighting and electronic appliances like TV etc. For
cooking biomass is the only affordable energy for households. Indeed, availability of biomass
supplies are plentiful by compare to other energy sources. So that, most of the people use biomass.
But, in some cases scarcity of biomass exists. Especially in Sub-Saharan countries 90% rely on
biomass as their primary fuel for cooking (IEA world energy outlook, 2006).

Households use charcoal for cooking in Urban and peri-urban areas. According to Ministry of energy
in Somaliland the average use of charcoal per household per month is 72kg or four sacks. This high
use of charcoal has a direct and significant impact on the environment through deforestation and air
pollution (Ministry of energy and minerals 2010).

In rural areas firewood is predominantly used for cooking. At the same time, in addition to charcoal,
a significant proportion of urban and peri-urban populations also use firewood for cooking. The
average amount of firewood used per month is approximately 344Kg (Ministry of energy and
minerals 2010). This means that many trees are being cut down or damaged. Deforestation is key a
problem for Somaliland and is exacerbated by the population being forced to use charcoal and
firewood due to the lack of the capacity and reliability of other sources of energy.

2.3 Energy Supply and Demand

The energy supply is significantly lower in Somaliland compared to international standards and
insufficient for the basic energy needs such as lighting, cooking, cooling and many other applications.
This means that the demand is very high with many customers seeking both a sufficient and a reliable
power supply to fulfil their energy needs (Ministry of energy and minerals, 2010).

Due to the problems of high cost, limited access and unreliability of electricity caused limited
consumption. Somalia including Somaliland has among the lowest electricity consumption in the
world. The net consumption of electricity was 288.3 million kilowatt hours (KWh) (Shuraako.org,
2015). There is a huge difference when we compare the consumption electricity in Finland in the year
2015, the total consumed electricity was 82, 5 terawatt hours (TWh).

In Somaliland it is left to private companies to generate and supply electricity. Currently the
production of electricity is almost exclusivity through the use of diesel generators. Often, due to the

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high demand for electricity and high numbers of connected customers, these generators are run at
levels exceeding the average capacity they were built to provide. This high usage, constantly
exceeding the average capacity of the generators, results in them regularly breaking down or being
destroyed completely, which in turn causes disruptions in the electrical supply and lack of overall
capacity.

The supply of energy and specifically electricity in Somaliland is weak, and needs many inventions
and innovations if it is to meet the levels of demand. In normal daily life electricity is crucial, in
addition to the use in households it is essential for healthcare facilities such as hospitals, work places,
businesses, educational institutions and public institutions. The lack of reliable electricity can cause
many losses, not just in a financial sense, but more important things such as loss of life, a population’s
health and other important things.

2.4 Energy price

In Somaliland electricity is generated exclusively from diesel generators. Oil price fluctuations and
the inefficiency in power transmission adds to the overall cost for electricity supply and results in
consumers in Somaliland paying some of the highest electricity prices in the world. Somaliland’s
consumer electricity prices range between USD 0.80 to USD 1.0 per kilowatt hour. By contrast in
South Africa consumers pay ten times less at USD 0.09 per kilowatt hour (World Bank, 2012).
In Sub-Saharan countries the average electricity price is USD 0.13 per kilowatt hour. Neighbouring
countries such as Ethiopia have cheap electricity compared to Somaliland. The consumer price of
electricity in Ethiopia is USD 0.06 per kilowatt hour. One key factor in Ethiopia's low price point is
that most electricity generation is hydroelectric (World Bank, 2010).

The household average usage of electricity is 20KWh per month. Expenditure on charcoal for cooking
is approximately US $19 per month. In addition to the financial aspect, there is the increasing scarcity
of charcoal, and it is slow cooking, dirty and hazardous. People are eager to find alternative sources
of energy for cooking (Ministry of energy and minerals, 2010).

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2.5 Comparing Somalia’s electricity tariff to neighbouring countries Ethiopia
and Kenya

Figure 1 Shuraako.org

This map shown in figure one represents three countries in eastern Africa. Somalia (blue color),
Ethiopia (yellow color) and Kenya (grey color). The numbers written on the map are average
electricity tariffs and average per capita GDP. The upper number is average electricity tariffs and the
lower shows average per capita GDP for each and one country on this map. These comparison are
concerning only the major cities in the region. Rural electricity is almost nonexistent (Shuraako.org,
2015).

Comparing of these countries electricity tariffs and per capita income are actually different. Kenya
and Ethiopia delight in average rates of $.15 and $ 0.06 per kilowatt hour respectively. While Somalia
is suffering high rates electricity average price of $.80 to $ 1.5 per kilowatt hour. On the other side,
their income is significantly low. Somalia pays one of the highest rates of electricity price while they
are living in one of the poorest countries in the world (Shuraako.org, 2015)

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2.6 Environmental problems caused by charcoal and diesel generators

Diesel generators produce huge amounts of carbon dioxide, which not only cause localized problems
but contribute to climate change. Engine oil is also another problem for the soil and underground
water. In Somaliland there are currently no regulations, policies or procedures for the management
and disposal of hazardous materials such as motor oil, batteries, ethylene glycol and other generator
components (Ministry of energy and minerals, 2010).

The use of charcoal and firewood in cooking causes two major secondary problems apart from the
release of carbon into the atmosphere, these being deforestation and soil degradation. Charcoal
suppliers are nomadic people who live in the country side, they have little understanding of the effects
on the environment their industry has and the consequences in the future. Their main concern, like
for many, is how to maintain a reliable source of income. In recent years, people who live in
Somaliland have experienced less rain and more droughts, which has resulted in significant numbers
of livestock deaths. Livestock in Somaliland is also a vitally important part of the country’s economy
(Ministry of Pastoral development and Environment, and Candle light NGO, 2004).

2.7 Social Impact of energy

Getting sufficient energy supplies in whole towns will change into good many people’s life (World
Bank, IEG, 2008). However, the situation suppliers are working in is not easy because the original
local government power grids collapsed during the war. This has resulted in the situation that energy
suppliers have built their own small grids to transmit electricity to the local communities.

A secondary social impact is the expansion of education within these areas. Residents of cities who
have access to electricity can use it for light at night instead of using kerosene. This has encouraged
them to educate both their children and themselves, resulting in a rise in the literacy rate and providing
people with a better future. As one of the goals of sustainable development is to achieve a quality
education, electricity is one of the services that can facilitate this.

The availability of electricity also has an impact on the health care system of the country, for example
hospitals have access to electricity for operations. Although currently the reliability of the electrical

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supply is low and sometimes it has even been cut during surgical operations. General population
health in urban areas improves little by little because of electricity.

2.8 Current Economic impact

Energy suppliers have a significant impact on Somaliland economy in general. The business
transactions between energy suppliers and energy consumers influences the market economy. The
energy suppliers have impact on both the demand and supply sides.

Energy influences the nature of the businesses in the country. Small and medium sized businesses
have access to electricity for cooling and lighting. Many small or medium businesses have developed
their business based on the availability of electricity, for example cold drink shops, photograph shops
and more. Looking at a macroeconomic view of the country, it depends on the interactions between
these businesses and consumers (Shuraako.org, 2015)
They play an important role for job creation in Somaliland. Many university graduates find
employment in these companies, however they employ both skilled and non-skilled workers.

2.9 Current Environmental Impact

The environmental impact from a philosophical point of view is not easy to define. Many of the most
wonderful landscapes from around the world are man-made, they have been designed and built.
Recognizing what creates a negative on the natural environment is subjective (Gareth Kane, 2010)

From a technical point of view it is more obvious and the following model is generally accepted as a
standard definition of environmental impact. This model defines three parts; source of the problem,
pathway, and receptor. The source is where the pollutants come from, the receptor is what is damaged
and the path way is the connector between the two (Gareth Kane, 2010).

To stop the environmental impact taking place we have to remove one of the three components.
Removing the receptor is really difficult or impossible. Removing the pathway is to make barriers
preventing the problem to reach the receptor. Removing the source is a sustainable solution which
means the removing of the problem (Gareth Kane, 2010).

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In Somaliland for consumers it is difficult to think about the environmental impact, because they
don`t have any other option. Although charcoal has a severe environmental impact, consumers have
little alternative to using charcoal for cooking. The demand for charcoal and firewood is high, which
encourages businesses to expand the supply of charcoal and firewood resulting in the cutting down
of more trees. The lack of sufficient electricity supply is one source of the problem, additionally there
is a lack of alternative energy sources from for example renewable energy.

Energy suppliers that focus on the supply of charcoal have a negative impact on the environment
irrespective of whether they are large/medium companies or individual traders. The electricity
suppliers with their generators use a huge amount of diesel and engine oil. They are using a finite
natural resource, produce greenhouse gasses, pollute the land though the unregulated disposal of oil
and significantly contribute to noise pollution, all this having a severe impact on the ecology of the
region. Here electric and charcoal suppliers are playing the pathway role when it comes to the model
of environmental impact assessment. They are answering the huge demand for energy, however with
little regard for the damage they are causing the environment (National planning, 2012-2016).

The receptors are the customers and environment itself. When the environment is damaged it causes
many problems such as droughts, soil degradation and the decline of biodiversity. Consumers
consume eco system services like food and water and this means that the continued sourcing of energy
from charcoal and diesel generators threatening food and water security.

3.0 Potential Renewable Energy in Somaliland

3.1 Sustainable strategies

Broadly speaking there are two approaches to environmental sustainability, the eco-efficient model
and the eco-system model (Gareth Kane, 2010). Both models have been implemented in real life, with
most examples to be found in western countries.

The Eco-efficient model concerns the quantity of materials/energy used and focuses on productivity
and efficiency improvements. This approach constantly needs changes/improvements and brings to

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the company system new machines or methods. In a country such as Somaliland this is not cost
effective, there is no long term viability (Gareth Kane, 2010)

The Eco-system model is based on identifying renewable resources, with the eco-system taking care
of the well-being of both the earth and its passengers while energy/products are produced. It is
concerned about the type of the materials and the sources of energy. For example solar and wind
solutions are renewable sources of energy which will not produce any waste, without the need for
constant changes/improvements. Any technological or regulations changes are only improvements.
For countries like Somaliland they are cost effective and environmentally friendly in all the time.

In Somaliland both approaches are largely absent in the market economy, in the minds of the people
or regulatory bodies. A few companies are trying to adopt eco-system models however currently they
are not sustainable as the economic component is not viable.

3.2 Solar energy

In Somaliland there is potential for very large quantities of Solar energy, with relatively high clearness
index of atmosphere(K) 0.6 – 0.7 for most of the year, and 0.5 for a few months and for nearly 2900-
3100 hours of sunshine per year (Ministry of energy and minerals, 2010). This means that, the solar
radiation available in one square metre can produce 5.4 to 5.8 kWh (Somali Joint Needs Assessment,
2006; UNDP/World bank 1985). In addition to the huge potential for solar energy generation in
Somaliland, there is also the demand as people are severely in need of sufficient energy in their daily
lives for cooking, lighting, cooling etc.

In Somaliland, solar panels have been in use since 1994. In the sixteen years from 1994 to 2010 with
an estimated investment cost of USD 170,000 solar panels have been installed to produce over
25KWh per day, which produced approximately 750KWh per month (Ministry of energy and
minerals 2010). Although there has been some investment in solar panel installation, the amount of
solar energy production currently is very small with little availability, which is in stark contrast to the
very high demand for energy. Currently solar panels are installed in specific places, such as hospitals,
NGOs, households and enterprises, but not for general electricity generation. Most of solar panel
installations are used for lighting, but a few other installations do exist, for example water pumping
in rural areas and water heating for restaurants (Shuraako.org, 2015)

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According to the ministry of energy and minerals of Somaliland 2010, the cost of installation is hugely
different and depend on the suppliers, but average capital investment is USD 0,006 per watt. But now
there is huge difference. Solar panel is cheaper now as it was before.

Berbera hospital has installed photovoltaic solar has capacity 60kw. The cost of installation was 9000
Us dollars. So that, capital investment of 1kilo watt is 150 Us Dollars (shuraako.org, 2015). But still
it is difficult to install solar panel for the normal person or family. The standard of living in
Somaliland is low, with a high unemployment rate, this is currently too expensive for most of them.
In addition to that, there is a lack of skilled people who can install and maintain the solar energy
technology properly.

3.3 Wind Power

Previous investigations have determined that there is sufficient wind throughout the year in
Somaliland to make wind power a viable renewable energy source. It has been recorded that the
average wind speed ranges between 6 to 10 meters per second (Ministry of energy and minerals 2010)
with a wind speed of 5 meters per second considered as excellent for power generation (Ministry of
energy and minerals 2010).

Currently the types of windmills/wind turbines installed in Somaliland are many with different sizes
and purposes. The most common windmills are designed for pumping water. Hargeisa international
airport get its energy from wind power, however in general wind turbine instillations in Somaliland
are small because capital equipment for building of wind turbines are missing in Somaliland like
suitable cranes (shuraako.org,2015).

Wind projects installed up till now are Aloog wind turbine which is still under construction. It will
produce 900 Kwh. This is the biggest wind turbine ever installed in Somaliland. Egal international
airport has installed wind turbine capacity of 100 Kwh and has faced a lot of technical problems
(Shuraako.org, 2015)

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3.4 Wind and Solar energy endowment of Somaliland

Figure 2, Source: African Development Bank report, 2013

This figure 2 indicates that the Somali region is endowed in wind and solar energy. The region has
extreme comparative advantage for these renewable energy. It has the highest potential onshore wind
power (African development bank, 2013). As World Bank documents states that the combination of
renewable energies endowed in Somali region like offshore wind, onshore wind, solar energy, tidal
and wave power on the Somaliland Coast could generate in the long term more power than the
potential hydropower of Ethiopia (World Bank, 2012)

The implementation of sustainable energy in Somaliland will boom the economy of the country. In
the future of Somaliland, renewable energy will be a factor of development. Many jobs will be
created. At same time, the environment with get less harm (ministry of energy and minerals, 2010)

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4.0 Renewable Energy Impact

4.1 Economic Impact

“Sustainability is the endpoint where civilization can thrive within the limits posed by only having
one planet” while the sustainable development is the process of getting from where we are now to
sustainability (Gareth Kane, 2010). Somaliland is a nation where currently sustainable development
is the main concern.

The energy sector in general plays an important role for economic activity in two ways. Firstly, it is
a part of the economy which creates jobs and value of obtaining, transforming and distributing goods
and services of all sectors of the economy (World Economic Forum, 2012). Secondly, the energy`s
impact is obvious for every sector of the economy, it is an input for almost every product and services
in the economy (World Economic Forum, 2012).

Accelerating the implementation of renewable energy will enhance economic growth, enhance human
well-being, result in creations of jobs and at the same time accelerate the decarbonisation of the
economy. This is beneficial for countries who are looking for economic growth and solution for
minimizing greenhouse emissions (IRENA, 2016). Renewable energy deployment is predicted to
double by 2030, increasing global GDP between 0.6% and 1.1% compared to business as usual. This
means that the increase amounts to between USD 706 billion and USD 1.3 trillion (IRENA, 2016).

Obviously Somaliland is the part of this. The deployment of renewable energy will increase the
economy dramatically. There is an abundance of renewable natural resources such as solar and wind,
and at the same time demand for energy is very high and supply is low. So that, the deployment of
sustainable and sufficient energy will decrease the gap between supply and demand of energy.

Renewable energy technology is capital-intensive and may be a barrier in business in the short term,
however the deployment of renewable energy will be beneficial for them long term. After installation,
the running cost is low and there are also secondary benefits to the economy (food and water security)
to follow a strategy based on sustainable consumption and investment.

As so many parts of the Somaliland economy are dependent on energy, improving the energy sector
with renewable energy solutions would lead to significant growth in the economy, while additionally

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providing social benefits (increases in literacy rates), and provide protection of the environment.
Deployment of renewable energy in Somaliland is a transformation point, from a fragile economy
with environmental challenges of soil degradation and deforestation, to an economy seeing significant
growth, improvements in society and environmental sustainability.

Renewable energy technologies create another opportunity for businesses. The exchange of goods
and services increase. Producers of this technology exports wind turbines, solar panels and many
other sustainable energy based technologies. This will shift the whole economy in positive way.

4.2 Social Impact

Renewable energy improves the well-being of the society. Especially it is cleanness and cheapness.
So that, it creates job opportunities and improve the quality of health and education services. (IRENA,
2016).

The improvement of educational facilities depend on reliable energy supply. This means that
renewable energy in Somaliland will influence positively education through the ability to use
educational technologies that are currently nonviable. Up until now the possibility of using computers
or other electronics for educational purposes has been impossible.

Educational institutions such as Polytechnics are an important factor which facilitates job creation
and employment. The lack of reliable energy in Somaliland is a significant obstacle to establishment
Polytechnics. Thus, deployment of renewable energy can have a huge impact on the ability to
establish Polytechnics and provide opportunities for the population to increase their education.
Currently one of the factors contributing to the high unemployment rate in Somaliland, is the scarcity
of skilled people.

Quality health services is a basic human need but it is not possible to provide modern health services
without electricity. Renewable energy is a solution to the unstable, unreliable and in many areas
unavailable energy supply currently affecting the health sector in Somaliland. This is especially
evident in villages and rural areas where no electric generators exist. Some hospitals of Somaliland
have implemented photovoltaic panels which produce sufficient energy for hospitals and this could
be expanded. Berbera general hospital is a live example which has installed photovoltaic panels for
electric generation (Ministry of energy and minerals 2010).

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 4.3 Environment Impact

Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is one of the important aspects of renewable energy.
Renewable energy is based on concept of ecosystem services, which describes the ability to renew
itself with no carbon produced while it is running. In addition, it is an alternative source of energy
which minimizes the use of fossil fuels (IRENA, 2016).

Deployment of sustainable energy results in the overall reduction of consumption of materials. This
means that products can be used in many different ways such as waste to energy. For example,
agricultural waste is converted in to bioenergy. It saves money, time and natural resources (IRENA,
2016).
Implementing alternative sustainable energy is crucial. Results of climate change have been seen in
Somaliland and in combination with the exploitation of natural resources (forests) has caused drought,
deforestation and soil degradation.

Renewable energy can save the lives of many trees. If Somaliland people have access to sufficient
clean energy, they will stop the exploitation of biomass products. This means that with the alternative
to generate renewable energy it will stop the need to cut down trees, and be the first step towards
improving the well-being of the environment, local air quality and biodiversity.

5.0 SWOT analysis

5.1 Swot analysis
This analysis is used to examine the strengths of renewable energy in Somaliland, which makes it
an opportunity available both now and in the future. Also the weaknesses of the sector and it`s
threats will may cause delay for deployment of renewable energy.

5.2 Strengths
The geographical location of Somaliland is very important. Situated on the horn of Africa
Somaliland lies north of the equator with the sun passing vertically two times of the year. The
average sun is almost shining half of the day. Wind resources is also abundant. The wind speed in
100m above the ground lies in the range between 2m/s to 12m/s (World Bank, ESMAP, 2016).

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5.3 Weaknesses
Somaliland energy sector faces many different technical challenges like poor transmission and
distribution systems. The monitoring of energy generation and usage is missing and infrastructural
obstacles to synchronizing generators and grids (shuraako.org, 2015).

The lack of technical schools is one of the weaknesses in Somaliland and has caused scarcity of
skilled and semi-skilled work force. Many people are unemployed as unfortunately they have no
skills. This issue has caused many problems in energy market. The current up to 40% of an energy
plants loss can be attributed to the lack of technical experts (Ministry of energy and minerals, 2010).

The renewable energy sector has its own challenges. The government has not put in place detailed
rules, regulations or policies for the energy sector, especially not for the renewable energy sector.
This creates many potential problems like the lack of standardization of renewable energy
technologies. It may, for example result in the import of poor quality equipment with the consumers
ending up suffering financial losses.

Currently the renewable energy solutions installed in Somaliland have no impacted cooking. Mostly,
the installed solutions on a too small scale and have no capacity to handle electric cooking stoves.

5.4 Opportunity
Electricity demand is very high in Somaliland whether energy is used for cooking, cooling or lighting.
This is a huge opportunity which needs the market to answer and is a huge opportunity for renewable
energy companies.

One opportunity for Somali entrepreneurs and renewable energy consumers is from donor-led
initiatives in the Somali Region which are currently operating mainly in Somaliland. They are trying
to introduce renewable energy programs which will funnel approximately USD137 million in the
whole region include Somaliland (shuraako.org, 2015).
Absence of reliable energy sources in the current situation gives chance to the entrepreneurs who
want to make green business. Strength existed on the ground the unemployment rate is high, so that,
deployment of renewable energy will create short term jobs and long term jobs. For example, in

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Somaliland coastal area there are many fisheries who have not proper storage for their fish after
fishing. The renewable energy will give them the opportunity to sell their fishes next week

5.5 Threat

There are several existing and potential threats to the development of renewable energy capacity in
Somaliland with for example poor infrastructure severely emplacing the deployment of renewable
energy. Roads, bridges and the lack of availability of capital equipment such as cranes increase the
complexity of deploying renewable energy. In many parts of Somaliland, the roads are very small,
often with no asphalt and/or are rough roads which may damage of renewable energy equipment.
This is especially relevant with the import and transportation and instillation of wind turbines with
the lack of suitable cranes significant issue that has been previously identified. These issues result in
higher costs for local entrepreneurs and in many cases cause them to postpone their investment in
renewable energy (shuraako.org, 2015)

Currently the international community does not recognize Somaliland as an independent country.
This means that finance and financial institutions are not working well. There is a local banking
system but it does not have any financial connections outside Somaliland. Although some efforts are
currently being made to manage the financing of renewable energy deployment in Somaliland, the
lack of a stable financial sector is a huge problem and will slow renewable energy deployment in
coming years.

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6.0 Renewable energy case studies

6.1 Case 1: Berbera hospital

Berbera is a coastal town in Saaxil region which has the international port and airport originally built
by the Soviet Union. The port of Berbera is the only international port in Somaliland and
approximately 90% of all imported goods come through this port. Berbera is both economically and
strategically very important (Somaliland national planning, 2012-2016)

Berbera regional Hospital serves almost twenty small towns and villages in the nearby region in
addition to Berbera itself. Due to the hospitals high demand for electricity it was a significant expense
to the general running of the hospital. According to a video report from the website of Shuraako
describing the deployment of solar panels to the Berbera hospital (shuraako.org,2015), the instillation
of solar panels cost USD 9000. After installing the solar panels, the hospital saved USD 42,000 in the
first ten months.

Solar energy has helped socially, economically and environmentally. The availability of affordable,
reliable energy has saved many lives as the hospital has been able to provide severely needed health
services to the region. According to shuraako (2015) the installation of solar panels to the hospital
has positively impacted the general running of the hospital. Previously when the lights went out due
to an electricity outage, the hospital would need to use diesel generators which in turn produced a lot
of noise, severely impacting on sick people in the hospital. With the installation of solar panels, the
story is now different (shuraako.org, 2015).

The hospital has benefitted economically too. With its high consumption of electricity and the high
price of electricity, the electricity bills accounted for a significant part of general running costs. Now,
with the reduction in the cost of electricity, it has given the hospital other possibilities such as buying
new equipment. Although not the main driver for installing solar panels, it has had positive impact
for the environment, too (shuraako.org, 2015).

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6.2 Case 2: Horn Renewable Energy Company-Kaafi Solar

Kaafi Solar was established in 2002 with the mission to electrify rural areas in Somaliland. However
it has only started one significant operation in 2012 after partnering with a German company called
Phaesun. It gave its priority to mobile charging stations in villages and rural areas, solar irrigation
water pumping and solar fridges in the coastal areas (shuraako.org, 2015).

Mobile phones have become one the essentials of the daily life. In Somaliland mobile phones are
used as more than just a phone but also as a form of banking system. Most of the people save money
to their mobiles, they can then buy goods and services with their phone. This way of working is
possible anywhere in Somaliland, even in rural areas. This usage of mobile phones has increased the
need for mobile charging stations. To date the Kaafi Solar Company has installed more than 50
charging stations all over the Somaliland, mostly in villages and rural areas (shuraako.org, 2015).

This business has saved a lot resources like money, fuel for generators and time. Socially it has
increased the awareness of solar panels, that they can produce clean and cheap electricity. Some of
the villagers and rural people who have the financial ability, have purchased and installed their own
solar panels for home lighting and Television. It has positive direct impact to the life of villagers and
rural people but also an indirect impact in introducing the possibilities available from solar panels.

Kaafi solar energy has also installed into many rural areas solar water pumping systems. In
Somaliland the impact of climate change has been/will continue to be significant as rural people
depend mostly on rain water as their main water source. Traditionally in rural areas they have water
pools to collect rain water for drinking, washing and cooking. However climate change is affecting
the weather patterns and rain is less frequent, so rural habitants need an alternative source of water.
Kaafi solar has provided a sustainable solution for the need of water (shuraako.org, 2015)

Kaafi has also made 30 fridge stations in different villages in coastal areas. The fishing industry is a
key industry in coastal areas, however the infrastructure is not good and it is difficult to easily
transport and sell fish immediately after returning from sea. There is a strong demand for a way to
safely store fish while they wait for customer to come and buy the fish. Here is where Kaafi solar has
been able to develop a good, reliable service, where fishermen can rent space in a cool store and store
their fish before sale. It has created more jobs, saved money and the environment.

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7.0 Conclusions

Somaliland's energy sector has been growing over the last twenty years and has made a lot of progress.
Although this progress has started to have a small positive impact on the lives of Somaliland, this
progress has not been made in a sustainable way and is having a severe negative impact on the
environment. Now, the implementation of renewable energy in Somaliland is essential.

Affordable, accessible, reliable and sustainable energy will profoundly affect the expansion of whole
economy and promote the speed of sustainable development of Somaliland. Electricity is a basic need
and will directly help improve the provision of quality education, well-being of the society,
community’s health and increase productivity of business. Also the availability of sustainable energy
will encourage the investments as currently investors see more risks than opportunities.

The deployment of renewable energy is crucial for the youth, who are immigrating the country. They
are lacking basic human needs like water, electricity, security, education etc. The youth needs skills
to compete the job market, they do not have it. Skills like Carpenters, It technicians, Plumbers, and
many other technical professions are not available because of the electricity.

The solution of many problems which are the community of Somaliland is facing will get solution if
enough capacity of renewable energy installed in Somaliland. For example, the use of charcoal will
be diminished. Many trees will be saved and many children under age of five will survive, because
numerous children are suffering from breath related diseases caused by charcoal smoke.

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