Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) is pushing for Kenyans to start using electricity for cooking and heating as soon as possible for it is “cheaper compared to using LPG and charcoal.” The company has already started pushing for this adoption.
With 9.2 million customers across the country, KPLC hopes to increase the number of those using electricity to cook from 90,000 to about 500,000 in the next three years. But with constant blackouts, will this be a viable option for millions of Kenyans?
“Electricity has traditionally been viewed as the expensive cooking alternative by many Kenyans. Middle-class households often own task-specific electric cooking appliances such as kettles or microwaves but rely on liquefied petroleum gas for the bulk of their cooking,” said Joseph Siror, the Managing Director and CEO of Kenya Power.
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In Kenya, the majority of the people, both in rural areas and urban centers, such as Nairobi, are still using charcoal and firewood to cook. LPG is still a luxury to millions of Kenyans and the thought of using electricity to cook remains a dream for millions of them.
The use of firewood, especially in open cooking has always been a health risk to millions of Kenyans, especially children under the age of 5. Stats show that respiratory complications are among the leading causes of death among children under the age of 5 in Kenya. Many mothers who use firewood are ailing from respiratory-related diseases.
“In the next 30 years, Africa is going to grow into another Africa. The population is going to double to about 2.3 billion people,” said Peter Scott, the Chief Executive Officer of Burn Manufacturing.
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