Social Entrepreneur Spotlight: Christopher Beza

Christopher, can you tell us the name of your enterprise and your role in its creation? 

I am the co-founder of Kwacha Energy Limited, which was officially registered on August 7th, 2017. The founders are myself, an Electrical Power Specialist, and an ICT Specialist, Clifford Chimaliro.

What inspired you to start Kwacha Energy Limited?

The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) III places electric energy in the top three priority areas. However, 2018 Malawi Population and Housing Census Report shows that Malawi’s sole power utility company - Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (ESCOM) Limited - is only able to service 453,592 households against 3,984,981 who are in dire need of electricity. The Government of Malawi believes that private investment is a solution to meet power sector goals. I believe in the philosophy of an engaged private sector. That is why Kwacha Energy Limited was founded.

The importance of supplying secure, equitable and environmentally sustainable energy to all in line with Goal 7 of the Sustainable Development Goals cannot be overemphasized.

Failure to do so, with the sense of urgency that it deserves, will only serve to further strain the already crippled manufacturing base and general socio-economic development. I have worked as a Distribution Planning and Development Engineer at ESCOM, and I count myself privileged to have been the lead person responsible for the parastatal’s Planning functions in the northern Region of Malawi. My job revolved around implementing asset enhancement and development programs required to meet target levels of service, performing network analysis and other power distribution network planning related decisions. Before joining the Planning Section, I also worked for six years as a Distribution Maintenance Engineer within ESCOM. My functions involved distribution asset management to ensure security and reliability of power supply. In my nine-year stint with ESCOM, I have witnessed firsthand the benefits which energy brings at household, community and national level as well as the downside of this too. 

Is your energy enterprise similar to work anyone else in your family has done or did you forge your own path in this business?

I am the first in my family to venture into the energy business. As a matter of fact, I am the first to have studied electrical Engineering and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Malawi in 2009. Since joining the power sector in 2012, I developed a keen interest and passion in power engineering, smart grids and renewable energy integration, and distributed generation. In 2016, I was a beneficiary of a training program in Management of Power Utilities using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) under Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) and Special Commonwealth Assistance for Africa Program (SCAAP) conferred by Central Institute for Rural Electrification (CIRE) in Hyderabad, India. Through this training opportunity, I was better equipped to understand the various constraints which Malawi faces in provision of electricity.

Has your time with the Flame Tree Initiative helped you with your enterprise? If so, how?

Flame Tree Initiative, through its signature DELab and DEStudio programs helped us to analyse our business and lock onto our business focus area through the development of our business’ Theory of Change as well as Business Canvas. FTI also helped us in development of various policies for our enterprise which include but not limited to Gender Policy; Management Policy; Anti Fraud Policy; Anti-Corruption Policy among others.

Under the Flame Tree Initiative, Kwacha Energy Limited (KEL) was challenged to identify a community that it can work with, to consume its (KEL) products and services productively. To realise this KEL mobilized from scratch, a group of young people in Chintheche, Nkhata Bay district, and started mentoring them in order for them to register as a cooperative society – Chigoŵi Cooperative. So far the group has been able to write to the Ministry of Industry to request for training and eventual formal registration as a cooperative. They have also secured a postal address, bank account, drafted by-laws, and engaged suppliers of their product’s packaging materials in South Africa. They also submitted a concept note on Agricultural Commercialisation (AGCOM) Project under the Ministry of Agriculture as well as applying for business loan under Malawi’s National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF). The organisation is 73.33% youth; which is 22 youths out of 30 total members (and further translates into 13 females and 9 males in the youthful category of 10-35 years in accordance with Malawi’s National Youth Policy).

How is your enterprise impacting your local community?

The education sector constantly faces a wide array of risks that could impact their access to the power necessary to run their facility.

Imagine the panic that could ensue if you have a school full of children or adults and the power goes out.

If an adequate backup power supply is in place, it will kick in automatically and supply the necessary power to keep things like electricity functional without interruption. This is why Kwacha Energy Limited, in collaboration with St. Patrick’s Seminary Foundation, installed a 2.45kW, 7.2kWh solar hybrid system at St. Patrick's Seminary, Rumphi district in Malawi.

Kwacha Energy Limited just collaborated with Moto Briquetting Solutions (MBS) on Modern Cooking for Healthy Forests Accelerator. MBS is also an enterprise under FTI that specializes in production of briquettes. MBS manufactures briquettes from raw materials of rice husks and saw dust – these are a more sustainable, cheaper, and cleaner alternative to fire wood and conventional charcoal. MBS produces briquettes in Chamalaza by using local carbonization techniques and manual pressing machine. This affects their production capacity hence the impact on the ground is very minimal. Kwacha Energy Limited will design and install a solar motorized briquette pressing machine in order to improve the effectiveness of the production line, as well as the briquette output. This will ultimately culminate into improved impact on sawdust and rice husk waste management and preservation of forests surrounding Mzuzu City.

Recently, under Kwacha Energy Limited, I was part of the team of engineers representing Malawi Engineering Institution (MEI)-Northern Region Chapter that carried out a needs' assessment at Mzuzu Central Hospital. We toured and assessed the then Ebola Treatment Centre that will now act as the Main Covid-19 Treatment Centre at this sole major referral hospital in the whole northern region of Malawi.

What goals do you have for your enterprise in the future? Growth or expansion or any new direction?

Bilateral and Multilateral organizations are major investors in healthcare, education, agriculture and other economic empowerment projects in Malawi. Among other factors, reliable and sustainable energy supply is key to unlocking returns on investments that these organizations are making in these sectors. Kwacha Energy Limited shall collaborate with these organisations, and the Malawi government, to resolve the electricity challenges in these investments. Kwacha Energy Limited will continue implementing off-grid power access projects with community involvement and vulnerable groups’ participation. This shall be done to ensure consistency with the short, medium and long-term renewable energy strategy targets set by the Malawi government.

There are plans by the Malawi government to restructure the power distribution sector. This shall be an enabling environment for Kwacha Energy Limited to pioneer smart architecture for distributed energy resource aggregation.  

Do you enjoy your work as an entrepreneur?

I enjoy my work very much, both as an entrepreneur as well as a power specialist. It gives a sense of fulfilment and purpose to have some of one’s work and contributions impact lives of other people, especially the vulnerable and marginalized groups of society.

Above all, it is fulfilling to contribute, albeit in smaller ways, in the development of my country, Malawi.

Is there anything else you would like to share about yourself or your work?

I want to further my studies by pursuing a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, focusing on Power and Energy. This program seeks to equip graduates and professionals alike with a broad yet robust training on Power System Planning, Power System Operation and Control, Distributed Energy Generation, and Virtual Power Plants, among others. My focus area will be Smart Grids and Renewable Energy Integration technologies, which are covering emerging trends in modern power networks. I anticipate that through this program, I will develop advanced technical and leadership skills that will enable me to handle the design, management and control of modern day power systems, building on my undergraduate Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering as well as my experience in the energy sector in Malawi.

I am particularly keen on increasing my knowledge in the field of Smart Grids and Renewable Energy Integration technologies because they have so far proven to be an economically attractive and hence viable solution to grow the electricity penetration rate in Malawi and assist in closing the huge backlog of those wishing to access the same. Implemented correctly, these distributed sources and micro-grids have great potential to be assimilated into the national grid and go a long way in alleviating the power generation capacity challenges in the country. By pursuing the Master of Science focusing on Power and Energy, I see myself playing a unique and crucial role in addressing these gaps and being among the group of young and emerging change agents who will fast-track other innovations in the energy sector in Malawi and the region considering that Malawi is a member of the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP).