Women solar technicians in Madagascar are transforming remote coastal villages, replacing dangerous kerosene lamps with clean, reliable light that keeps children studying after dark and opens new doors for women and their communities.
Women solar technicians in Madagascar are addressing one of the country’s most persistent challenges: the lack of electricity. Madagascar is one of the least electrified countries in the world. Nearly 84% of the Malagasy population has no access to electricity, rising to over 95% in rural areas. For generations, families in remote villages have depended on petroleum lamps for light. Those dim, smoky lamps carry steep costs: respiratory illness, fire hazards, and a reliance on expensive imported fuel. Women solar technicians in Madagascar are changing that reality, one village at a time.
Through the Barefoot College National Programme, supported by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), these women are installing, maintaining, and repairing solar energy systems in their own communities. Barefoot College is a non-profit organization that trains rural women from developing countries in applied solar technology, even when those women have little or no formal education. Instructors use gestures, colors, and demonstrations to overcome language barriers, making the training accessible to women from many different backgrounds and regions.
In one village alone, 165 out of 210 households, nearly 79%, now have access to safe, reliable electricity as a direct result of the work done by women solar technicians in Madagascar. That is a shift that touches almost every family. Children who once stopped studying at sunset can now read and do homework by lamplight. Parents can prepare food in the evening without attracting insects to a smoky flame, and families report significant cost savings by reducing their reliance on kerosene and batteries.
The program also supports small economic activities. In fishing communities, women are using reliable light to prepare and process fish into the evening hours, stretching their workday and increasing household income. So far, 131 women solar technicians in Madagascar have completed the program across 21 villages, and the ripple effect of their skills reaches hundreds of thousands of people.
The program is designed to keep benefits local. Older women, often grandmothers, are prioritized as trainees because they are less likely to relocate to cities after completing the course and are more committed to sharing what they have learned with their neighbors. This approach builds lasting capacity inside the community rather than importing outside expertise that may not stay. What does a community gain when its own members hold the technical knowledge needed to keep the lights on? The answer is self-reliance.
The partnership between WWF Madagascar and Barefoot College International began in 2012, with a focus on tackling energy poverty in some of Madagascar’s most remote landscapes. Since 2017, the Malagasy Ministry of Energy and Hydrocarbons, Barefoot College Madagascar, and WWF have worked together to develop a dedicated training center and curriculum. That collaboration has steadily expanded the program’s reach and depth, adding lessons on women’s empowerment and reproductive health alongside the technical curriculum.
The National Barefoot College Programme has set an ambitious target: developing a network of 744 women solar technicians in Madagascar and reaching 630,000 households by 2030. To put that in context, 630,000 households represent millions of people who currently go without reliable light every single night.
The National Barefoot College Programme is training a network of 744 women solar technicians in Madagascar with a target of reaching 630,000 households by 2030, a goal that would bring reliable light to millions of people who currently spend every night in darkness. Photo courtesy of Barefoot College Madagascar.
The benefits reach well beyond the home. Women who complete the training also receive instruction in running a small business and managing basic finances. Some are already putting those skills to use. One graduate described plans to take out a small loan to buy fabric and start a clothing business, adding that even if that idea did not work out, she was confident other opportunities would follow.
One graduate put it plainly, encouraging others in her community: “Women often lack courage where I’m from, so I want to tell them: be courageous and be strong. Don’t be afraid and take your responsibilities.” That message carries real weight in places where women have historically been excluded from technical roles.
The program plans to expand beyond lighting to include solar-powered water pumps, which would further improve access, safety, and daily life in Madagascar’s most isolated communities. Clean water and reliable light together remove two of the biggest barriers to health and economic progress in rural areas. For a broader view of how solar maintenance and repair skills are scaling across the continent, the African solar repair movement offers a compelling look at how communities are working to keep solar systems running in the long term.
Women solar technicians in Madagascar show what is possible when skills training, community buy-in, and long-term partnership align. A single trained technician can light up an entire village, keep a generation of children in school, and inspire other women to step into leadership roles. The model is practical, locally rooted, and built to last. When women gain skills, whole communities gain ground.
