Philips Lighting backs Solar Soccer Cup in Kenya
Philips Lighting, a Royal Philips company, has announced a Solar Soccer Cup to mark the successful implementation of more than 100 Community Light Centres at soccer pitches in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Two under-15 boys’ teams vied for the trophy on the eve of the second United Nations Environmental Assembly in Nairobi. The match, played under solar LED (light-emitting diode) floodlights, took place at the Philips Community Light Centre at Mathare, an informal settlement on the outskirts of the Kenyan capital, on Sunday.
The match was to be watched by senior government figures from across the world who gathered in Nairobi for the second UN Environmental Assembly, which opened on Monday.
“I have my own barbershop here inside the container where the batteries are kept for the Community Light Centre in Mathare,” said Alfonce Muckiri, a barber. “Where I was working before, the electricity was unreliable. Now, thanks to the CLC, I can work a full day and earn money for my family.”
Globally, an estimated 1.1 billion people still live in light poverty, without access to safe or reliable electric light. Tragically, 1.5 million die each year because of fire or respiratory illness caused by noxious fumes from lighting their homes with kerosene, candles or fires.
“It doesn’t have to be like this. Solar-powered LED is a huge opportunity to eradicate light poverty,” said Eric Rondolat, CEO of Philips Lighting. “We don’t have to wait for answers or new inventions – this form of light is already transforming lives in off-grid and urban communities across Africa, Asia and Latin America.”
Solar-powered LED has enabled entire communities to “leapfrog” the light-poverty trap, by harnessing clean energy to power more equitable social and economic development. Philips Lighting encourages local people to take ownership of lighting installations, through support for technical training in maintenance and business skills.
In partnership with Dutch soccer association KNVB’s World Coaches programme, local coaches at CLCs have delivered training for people in both soccer technique and life skills, spanning issues from crime to health and the social position of girls and women.
The combination of LED lighting and solar-powered energy is a necessary step to curb carbon emissions and achieve global carbon neutrality in the second half of the 21st century.
