Sulayman Junkung General Hospital (≈ $300,000)
The Sulayman Junkung General Hospital could only afford to keep its generators running for eight to ten hours. The rationing of energy from each day to the next resulted in a lot of complications, such as no electricity and no running water. Power Up Gambia, however, helped to install 108 solar panels, ninety of which were dedicated to providing electricity and the remaining eighteen for running water, a water pump, and energy efficient light bulbs. After this upgrade, the hospital is now working more efficiently and can provide better healthcare for its people.
Somita (≈ $105,000)
In addition to the Sulayman Junkung General Hospital, Power Up Gambia also helped to improve Somita, which is a satellite clinic of SJGH. The lighting for this clinic shuts off after two hours every day and is powered by only six poor quality solar panels and mere batteries. Even though the village in which this clinic is located has a population of 5,000, it can serve up to 23,000 patients, some of whom walk as many as thirty-five kilometers to be treated. When approached by the Village Development Committee, Power Up Gambia immediately seized the opportunity to help another institution. With the help of The Gambia’s leading solar panel contractor, GamSolar, Power Up Gambia was able to shine a new light on the patients of Somita with fifteen, state-of-the-art solar panels.
Bansang Hospital (In Progress)
Power Up Gambia began funding its newest project, the Bansang Hospital, in October of 2010. Built in 1938 and later renovated in 1996, the Bansang Hospital serves not only the poorest population of The Gambia but also the largest of all its hospitals. Although about 600,000 patients come and go every day, many of the operations in the Bansang Hospital are performed in the dark. The town of Bansang is limited to only a few hours of electricity every day due to the inability to pay off fuel and supply costs, and with such prices on the rise, the Bansang Hospital is taking a turn for the worse. In December of 2010, Power Up Gambia was able to replace the defective batteries of the existing solar power system for the children's unit with maintenance-free sealed lead acid batteries, and it hopes to have installed a 12kW photovoltaic system by the Fall of 2011.