Madjah

Madjah has lived in the Touloum refugee camp since 2003 and supports a family of 4 as a housekeeper. She currently cooks on an open fire, and collecting firewood is both time-consuming and dangerous. The traditional stove uses large amounts of firewood, contributing to landscape degradation, while the smoke causes indoor air pollution that harms her family’s health and releases significant CO₂ emissions

Since the war in Sudan, more than one million Sudanese people have fled to neighbouring Chad. Many have lived in refugee camps in the border region for more than 15 years. Cooking on an open fire is one of the many daily challenges they face. The camps are located in a very dry region with little available wood, leading to conflicts between the local population and refugees who rely on the scarce supply for cooking. Women and children often travel long distances in dangerous conditions to collect firewood.

To help address this problem, the Haines Solar Cooker (HSC) was introduced as a way of cooking using solar energy. Sunlight is reflected off the foil onto a black-painted pan, which is placed inside a heat-resistant plastic bag where warm air circulates. By using the HSC, women and children no longer need to leave the camp to gather wood. This brings a significant improvement in safety for women and provides a clean, healthy and smoke-free way of cooking.

Our partner, FairClimateFund, has supported this project since 2019 by certifying the CO₂ savings resulting from reduced wood consumption as Gold Standard. Madjah has requested this grant to receive a solar cooker.

Please note that by supporting Madjah, you are making a grant and not a loan. You won’t receive the repayments you would normally expect with a Lendwithcare loan, and instead, we’ll let you know the reduction in CO₂ emissions thanks to your support.