Panasonic Corporation today announced the launch of the 100,000 Solar Lantern Project, a project to donate a total of 100,000 solar LED
lanterns to people in regions of the world without electricity, by 2018,
the 100th anniversary of the company's founding.
As the first stage in
this effort, Panasonic (link) is donating 3,000 compact solar lights to NPOs
and NGOs helping to solve social problems in Myanmar. A ceremony to mark
this donation was held today at the Sedona Hotel Yangon in Yangon,
Myanmar. Next month, Panasonic plans to donate an additional 5,000
compact solar lights to an NGO in India, along with 2,000 lights to a refugee camp in Africa.
Currently, there are about 1.32 billion people worldwide living
without electricity, mainly in developing countries in Asia and Africa.
Many homes in these regions use kerosene lamps for lighting, but these
lamps pose the risk of fire and the smoke released by the lamps is also
harmful to human health. Since kerosene lamps also do not provide
sufficient light, they significantly restrict what people can do at
night while creating considerable hazards for them. The lack of electric
light in these regions means challenges in the areas of healthcare,
education and the economy.
In order to help solve the various problems in these non-electrified
regions, Panasonic has been promoting corporate citizenship projects by
actively utilizing its core technologies and products. The donation of
the solar lanterns is one example of these efforts. By generating
electricity from sunlight during the day and storing it in a battery,
Panasonic's solar lantern can be used as a small lighting fixture at
night. It poses no risk of fire or harm to human health, and generates
no CO2 emissions during use.
A member of the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS), Myanmar is now
promoting democratic and economic reforms, and anticipates significant
economic growth in the near future. However, the country's
electrification rate remains low at just 13%, and there are
still many challenges in various areas including education and
healthcare. In order to help solve these kinds of social issues,
Panasonic is providing compact solar lights to NPOs and NGOs working to
improve Myanmar's education and healthcare.
In April 2011, Panasonic donated 1,000 solar LED lanterns to Tanzania
through a UN agency, followed by 2,000 lanterns to Cambodia through an
NGO in March 2012. Thanks to the bright light provided by these
lanterns, users can effectively carry out healthcare, education, and
economic activities even at night, without any of the health risks posed
by kerosene lamps. Some households have even reported lower expenses
now that they do not have to buy kerosene. Therefore, based on these
past efforts, the 100 THOUSAND SOLAR LANTERN PROJECT is being launched
with the firm belief that these lanterns can play a major role in
helping to solve social issues in developing countries and newly
emerging economies.
With the aim of becoming the No. 1 Green Innovation Company in the
Electronics Industry by 2018, Panasonic will continue to donate solar
lanterns to developing countries and newly emerging countries in Asia
and Africa, where many people live without electricity. The company is
striving to help improve living conditions in these regions, and is
carrying out initiatives to help achieve sustainable development and the
UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
Four organizations in Myanmar slated to receive compact solar lights (in alphabetical order):
- Bridge Asia Japan (NPO)
- Greater Mekong Initiative (NPO)
- Japan Heart (NPO)
- Myanmar Red Cross Society
