I got a birthday cake from Leap, ...
... snow...
...and my friends invited me to a real orgy after one week of mainly rice and soup.
Six girls (one behind the camera) in one swimming tuc-tuc. Rainy season appearently decided to really start for my birthday...
...so that we were glad to pass the night indoor. In the picture: Doortje in a dance battle against a local.
Back at Kamworks: Thanks for a great day and the cool presents!
We left from the Netherlands with three basic concepts in our mind: a battery product, a solar product and a hybrid one; meaning a battery product that can be extended to a solar.
Now that the second phase of our research comes to an end we can come to some conclusions:
· A product system based on a battery product is too much hassle for the rural population in Cambodia. Cambodians have to go to a battery charger early in the morning, leave their battery for charging, and come back in the evening to get their battery back. This procedure is a routine for the Cambodians, and takes place almost every 3 days. Hence, 121 times in the year. Adding another product that runs on rechargeable batteries and requires charging from an external party would be an additional burden to their lives…
· Cambodians pay too much for energy and light. Charging the battery every 3 days (1500Riel/time), costs to them 82500Riel/year ($45). If they also use a kerosene light, it costs to them another 50400R/year ($12,6/year). If we add to these costs, the costs of the primary batteries for the flashlights the total costs can exceed the $70/year. That means that almost 1/3-1/4 of the people’s income goes to energy and light expenses (without calculating how often people substitute a battery or a fluorescent lamp). As a result, a solution that adds more running costs is not an option for the rural population of Cambodia.
· From the interviews we conducted, we found out that people like a solar powered light. Although that it is something totally new to them, they seem to embrace the idea. As they often stated they like the fact that they do not have to pay anymore for the light. In one case, an interviewee stated that he is willing to pay even the double price for a product running solely with solar energy.
· A solar powered light is not sci-fi. Using amorphous cells, we can power a lamp of 5-6 LEDs cost effectively.
As a result, our final concepts will be around a solar powered product. That means a light either with an integrated solar panel or with an additional one.
Kamunasal’s willingness to build a brand and keep it formal looks like a joke to me. Trying to be formal in Cambodia it’s like trying to keep dust out from a hut in the dessert…it just doesn’t work!
Instead of considering the informal way of doing business in Cambodia as an additional burden, man should look at them as opportunities. The charging mobile service in Africa, and the second life of mobile phones in (China?) thanks to people’s creative mind are great examples to get inspired from.
Kamunasal should not worry that much about being formal, but more about reaching the people and selling products. The pilot phase so far is not encouraging, with almost zero sales. It seems that something has to change…
Koky Market, where Kamunasal is located in, serves more like a wholesales’ market, where little vendors can supply all the necessary products for their shops and less like a retail market. Kamunasal instead of following their examples to reach the rural population chose the tough way; waiting people to come to the shop…Like we say in Greece, when the mountain does not go to Moameth, Moameth has to go to the mountain.
Hence supplying a local vendor in a rural village with Kamunasal’s products looks like a good solution… The micro entrepreneur, who already goes everyday to the Koky Market for supplies, will also go to the Kamunasal shop for more supplies. This way the micro entrepreneur can increase his/her income, while Kamunasal can reach the rural population more effectively. To retain some level of formality, Kamunasal can train the local people on the basics (to sell a solar lamp and not a home solar system) and try to build a trustful relationship with them.
At the same time, if Kamunasal wants to expand from the Kandal province, which at the moment looks impossible, it would be wiser to look for a partnership with a NGO. NGOs have the funds and the capacity to reach a lot of people, very fast. Selling Kamworks products or the Kamunasal idea to a NGO could prove a good idea.
Having done the interviews and seen the houses lighted in the night, we realized that people do not need a primary light. The car battery serves the peoples’ needs quite well, although it is rather expensive. Charging the battery every 3 days (1500Riel/time), costs to them 82500Riel/year ($45). The car battery substitutes the electricity grid, and allows the people to connect to it from a fluorescent light to a TV, a DVD, a stereo home system etc.
Nevertheless, you cannot tell that people do not need light. The fluorescent lamp might serve as a generic, ambient light that lights the main room and a little bit the entrance of the house, but it is not enough. The fluorescent lamp is most of the times attached to the wall or the roof, offering limited functionality to the people. Various needs that require a minimum amount of light and portability remain uncovered. People need a light to go outdoors; to the toilet, to visit a friend, to check the chickens or the cows… They also need another light indoors, apart from the fluorescent lamp, to cook, to light the bedroom, to watch out the kids, to watch TV…
An affordable, portable, orientation light, with low or no running costs would be the ideal solution for the people. Firstly it would substitute the kerosene lamp which not only harms peoples’ health and is a permanent risk of fire in the house, but also costs 4200R per liter that lasts for one month [50400R/year=$12,6/year]. Furthermore, it would also save some energy from the car battery. People sometimes watch TV with the fluorescent light on (for more comfort?).
The solution does not have to be oversized, with a lot of LEDs, functions etc like a lot of NGOs do. People just need a secondary, multipurpose light, which ideally should not have any running costs for them. A torch does not serve their needs really; the task light and the torches’ grasp limit its functionality a lot. Although that people have most of the times more than one torch at home, it seems not to prefer them, and pick a petrol lamp instead.
Last but not least, do not forget that people already have the burden of the charging system for their car batteries. Adding one more product that requires charging and money, for sure would not be for peoples’ benefit.
In conclusion, KEEP IT SIMPLE!
Kamworks is placed in Sre Ampil, a rural village in the middle of nowhere, about 40 km from Phom Penh. A sand road will lead you from the main road to Kamworks and the Campus. Always when we walk or cycle on this road, all the children call ‘Hello, Hello..’ as if they saw white people for the first time in their lives...
It is also a nice mindsetter to be here. In the Neterlands you take everything for granted, but now we are here, it is a very common situation that we do not have water, internet or energy. Last weekend, we stayed at the Campus to work (we have had a very long trip the weekend before), but for a large part of the weekend we didn’t have water in half of the building and we did not have internet. Everything will be so wonderfull again when we are back in the Netherlands...
At 09.30 we always have tea time and we dink some coffee and tea in a kiosk and we can discuss some things which Arjen (Manager of Kamworks) or with the other staf of Kamworks.
At 12.00 we have lunch. Because Cambodia was a colony of the French, we can eat the French breads every day in the morning and at lunch. For the filling we can buy eggs, fruits and vegatables on the steets next to the Campus or buy peanutbutter, pate, jam or tuna in the international supermarkets in Phnom Penh (but.. 1.5 hour away...). This week we started to also have a warm lunch at the orphanage, just like the diner in the evenings...
Sometimes it is really hard to keep awake after the lunch and we take a small nap...
The last week the SPD people (Ana and Loucas) were busy with doing more interviews and trying to find out more about the market and a good way to reach the people with our new product. The IPD people (Steffi and Doortje) have been working on sketching ideas for specific subproblems (how to's...) and did some electronic tests to find out more about the needed energy input and light output of the system....
Today we had our deadline for the idea generation phase and so we had the last 2 days some nice things to do in the evinings... But it worked out and we are very convenient with our result and conclusions... Up to the next phase!!!
Testing the charging speed of this home-made low-cost PV panel...
Making a LED light of 3.2 Volt work on only a 1.2 Volt battery.... How many hours could one LED work on a battery that was charged for one day in the sun on a low-cost PV panel?
At about 17.00 we sometimes go out for a short trip before dinner at 18.00. Since a few days we have a few motorbikes and normal bicycles with which we can discover the surroundings...
At 18.00 we have dinner at the orphanage, next to Kamworks. The meals are very good and mostly consists of rice with some filled cucumbers or tomatoes, potatoes, fish (cheaper than meat) and/ or chicken. As a desert we always get a bunch of fresh fruits, very good as well!
At about 18.30 also all the childen of the orphanage arive at the dinerplace and always start with a very nice song to thank for their meal...
After diner, we often get back to our computers (yes, we are really addicted :) ) for about 1 hour and then we still have some time left for relaxing. Most of the time we do some game or watch a movie with a big part of the group. It is a really nice combination between hard working times and good relaxing times!
But.... We don't make it too late... the next day starts again with the sunrise at 06.00....... =)
Jan, Loucas ans Tom, disguised as statues.
Fake sunrise à la Cambodgienne.
Climbing, observed by a bunch of lions.
Ohne Worte.
Angkor Wat, reversible...
..and from inside.
The "Lara Croft temple".
At the end of the day, it becomes hard to distinguish us from the locals...
Leap and his wife, our guides and tired heroes at sunset. In the foreground: dusty foot and a new friend.
No matter how much you try, you will always feel there is much more to know and to ask, and we are very thankful with the attitude of the people, they are always happy to share their life, needs and hopes.
This girl tries to sell drinks to boat passengers. She was brought by a little boat, but had to swim back, without having sold anything.
Phnom Penh was a nice change after ten days of complete isolation in Srê Ampil.
View on the poorest areas next to the Mekong out of the tuc-tuc
