The Benefits of a Fuel-Efficient Stove
Almost all the Darfur refugees still cook on inefficient three-stone fires. A $20 metal stove and the training to use it can cut the demand for fuel wood by half. The stoves can save each refugee household $160 worth of fuel wood annually — and reduce the need for fuel wood collection trips by 50%, also halving a woman's exposure to risk of rape outside of the camps. The use of fuel efficient stoves in Darfur will also significantly reduce the pressure on the local environment, allowing it time to regenerate.
Our 2005 survey of refugee families showed significant impacts of inadequate fuel wood including:
- A significant fraction of families are missing meals for lack of fuel (50% in South Darfur, and 90% in North Darfur camps that we visited).
- A significant fraction (40%) of refugees in South Darfur camps resort to selling some of their limited food rations to purchase fuelwood. In North Darfur camps, this fraction has risen to (80%).
A full report of our field visit can be found, and an article describing this work, here.
With more than 2.2 million refugees, there is a need for about 300,000 stoves. Learn more about The Darfur Stoves Project and how you can help.
Next page—Fuel-Efficient Stoves
