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Low Smoke Stoves Project

Clearing the Air in Darfur

In Darfur, shared knowledge and improved technology is making cooking at home safer and cheaper.

Closed Project

The Challenge

Feeding your family and keeping warm are basic human needs. But in North Darfur, indoor pollution created by smoke from the firewood and charcoal used on household stoves is a major cause of death for women and children.

  • 90% of households rely on wood and charcoal for their fuel. It’s expensive to buy and produces large amounts of smoke when burnt.
  • The reliance on firewood has led to mass deforestation in the area.
  • Women traditionally do most of the cooking and spend long hours surrounded by smoke which causes eye and chest infections, coughs and other illnesses they then need to pay a doctor to treat.
  • The stoves don’t cook efficiently, meaning it takes a long time to prepare meals so women are not able to work or spend time with their family.

“Before the LPG stove I used wood and the traditional three stone fire to cook. This method of cooking affected our health. We had chest infections, coughs. I never allowed my children to come into the kitchen while I was cooking.”

Khadija, 42 yrs, Elfashir, North Darfur, Sudan

The Ingenious Solution

We’ve teamed up with the Women’s Development Association to educate communities and introduce new Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) stoves in El Fasher. Reducing carbon emissions and giving thousands of families clean homes, clean lungs and more money to spend on essentials.

  • Community awareness programmes have made people aware of the dangers of using wood stoves, and the harm it does to both their health and the environment.
  • 12,080 stoves have been installed in households in El Fadir, with micro loans offered to poorer families to help cover the initial costs. Since the installation, almost 100% of households have said the air quality in their home has drastically improved.
  • The new stoves use less fuel, saving around 65% on monthly fuel bills.
  • The stoves cook quicker so women have more time to earn money and be with their families.
  • Deforestation has slowed and new community forests have been planted.
  • The project has now become the first accredited carbon credit project in Sudan, with LPG stoves cutting more than 400,000 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide over ten years.

“The LPG stove has totally eliminated the smoke and it has also helped families to have a bit more money. LPG gas is cheaper than charcoal – which many families use to cook with as well as firewood. We can use the money we save on other things – maybe for our farming or to buy more food. I think each family saves about 110 Sudanese pounds a month.”

Randa Fadul Ali, Elflashir, North Darfur, Sudan

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