A Congolese refugee is providing a lifeline for thousands of refugees and their hosts in Kenya’s Kakuma camp
Lodwar, Kenya • Climate Change • 14 Feb 2023
Vasco Hamisi is in northwestern Kenya’s Kakuma refugee camp. The Congolese refugee is the brains behind this outfit, which provides clean energy to 200 businesses inside and outside the camp, as well as many refugee households. He arrived in Kakuma 12 years ago after fleeing fighting in his hometown in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He initially started a community-based organization to help find solutions to the camp’s energy needs. He later set up Okapi Green Energy as a private company and received financial support from Power Africa and the Smart Communities Coalition, via the US African Development Foundation, to set up a 10-kilowatt solar mini-grid.
