The Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority has reported substantial progress in the adoption of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for clean cooking in the country.
According to the authority, the consumption rate has risen to 2.2 metric tons per year, and this success is attributed to the removal of taxes on LPG cylinders and accessories.
In an interview with MIJ Online Macjessie Muula, a Gas Regulation Specialist at MERA said, there was optimism that the country might experience increased adoption of LPG as a means to reduce the reliance on damaging biomass for cooking.
“Looking at where we are coming from, its about 30 to 40% increase and we are very happy with the adoption but obviously more can be done” said Muula.
Muula also mentioned that the authority has increased its efforts in monitoring compliance to ensure that LPG accessories available in the market meet the required quality standards.
Meanwhile, a Malawian clean energy company named 265 Energy has introduced gas accessories with the goal of advancing clean cooking in the country, as stated by Phillip White, the company’s communication officer.
“These gas accessories include 2 plate gas cooker, Bull nose regulator and gauge and all these have met the standards of the energy regulator – Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority” said White.
Meanwhile, Eliam Kamanga, Communications, social marketing and behavior change specialist for Modern Cooking for Healthy Forests there have been noticeable changes in the adoption of gas technologies.
“ The targets for cooking technologies , we want to achieve adoption mainly in urban areas because that is where most of the illegal charcoal is consumed, so if we increase the uptake in the urban areas, then there will be less demand of illegal charcoal and even firewood” said Kamanga.
As reported by the Center for Environmental Policy Advocacy regarding energy consumption, over 96% of the Malawian population relies on firewood or charcoal for cooking.