On the 20^th January 2011 through the Lesotho Renewable Energy Based Rural Electrification (LREBRE) Project a donation of renewable Energy equipment was provided to seven technical colleges.  One of the key components of the LREBRE project is to strengthen and support the public and private sector working in the renewable energy sector. Under this component, the project supports dealers working in the solar industry by strengthening the Lesotho Solar Energy Society (LESES) and providing short courses on photovoltaic installations and business management.

From Left: Palesa Motleleng Communications Manager-LREBRE; Lineo Mdee Head Energy and Environment-UNDP; Nkopane Ramaphiri Director-TVD and Leloko Mokhuts'oane, Director-Dept of Energy

Furthermore the project wanted to support technical institutions to increase the number of best performing installers in the country. As a consequence, LREBRE invited technical institutions to attend a meeting which was held on the 15^th September 2009 at Maseru Sun Cabanas. It was during this important meeting that both the project and institutions highlighted challenges such as limited private sector capacity to supply, distribute, install and maintain solar PV systems, poor workmanship in the installation of renewable energy technologies, lack of trained manpower at all levels for maintenance of renewable energy systems and institutions problems such as the syllabus and its implementation as a result of limited time to complete the whole curriculum, inadequate resources for demonstrations and practicals, and insufficient training materials in the form of outdated PV code of practice and lastly human resources capacity building. It is understood that the syllabus merely cover approximately 5% of the overall electrical installations syllabus hence it’s inadequate and somehow vague. As an intervention strategy, these colleges were then provided with renewable equipment to the value of M100, 000.

Technical Institutions that were handed equipment are as follows:

i)  Lerotholi Polytechnic

ii) Technical School of Leloaleng

iii) Technical School of Leribe

iv) Thaba Tseka Technical Institute

v)  Bethel Business College

vi) Appropriate Technology Services

vii) National University of Lesotho

Heads of Technical Institutions at the handing over of the solar equipment	The Director of TVE (right) hands over the solar equipment to one of the beneficiaries

During the handing over, on behalf of UNDP, Ms Lineo Mdee delivered a speech highlighting the aim of UNDP and the achievement of Millennium Development Goals particularly in Energy and Environment. She further reiterated UNDP Administrator assertion on how important to adapt to climate change and the expectation that the donated technology will support the instructional learning goals.

Mr Nkopane Ramaphiri, The Director of Technical and Vocational Training in the Ministry of Education and Training thanked the United Nations agencies in Lesotho for their commitment in assisting Lesotho in her endeavour to provide training in local technical and vocational education and training institutions. “We are proud of the United Nations agencies as lack of resources hinders progress in most technical institutions as practical work is a necessity, he added”. On behalf of the beneficiaries, Dr. Palo Pokothoane from Lerotholi Polytechnic  thanked the Ministry and UNDP for the equipment and promised to make a good use of it.