Barriers of solar cooking and policy prescription towards its adoption in Tanzania: The case of Southern Unguja and Kilimanjaro regions

Abstract

Solar cooking is a sustainable way of cooking and heating that use direct energy from the sun. Despite the introduction of solar cookers in Tanzania, various challenges have hindered the adoption of this technology. This study aims to explore the level of awareness of solar cooking technology among community members, and the main barriers confronting its usage, while exploring factors that can strengthen its adoption in Tanzania. The study is informed by semi-structured questionnaires, in-depth interviews, and a review of relevant documents. The collected quantitative data were subjected to descriptive statistics, while qualitative data were brought under thematic analysis. The study found a good level of understanding and awareness of solar cooking technology among researched communities. Nevertheless, higher prices, poor designs, limited access, weather dynamics were found among factors discouraging successful adoption. Moreover, solar cooking adoption is incentivized by the relief from costs of using of conventional fuels such as fuelwood. The study concludes that solar cooking technology bears a great potential of environmentally friendliness, long term cost saving with zero operational costs, and protects the health of the users from some harmful cooking fuels. This study recommends more efforts to promote the domestic use of solar cooking through education to individuals in the communities and policy interventions to increase its adoption rate in Tanzania.