Mobile charging solar panels that power phones as fast as a wall plug has been launched in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital city as the country battles with power deficiency; 75 percent of Zambia currently lacks access to electricity, with only 14 percent of electricity supplied by the national power grid.

The solar panel was launched by the World Panel Zambia Ltd., with senior Zambian government officials, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) free-trade group leaders, US embassy officers, African Development Bank (AfDB) officials and the CEOs of major Zambian mobile operators present.

“I’ve worked for many years to empower people in rural Africa to improve their economic well-being and opportunities in life. This utility-grade personal solar charger finally delivers on my dream to aid and empower people living without regular access to electricity,” said Jacob Sikazwe, CEO of World Panel Zambia.

Inventor of the solar panels, John Anderson, who is also CEO of US-based World Panel Inc., noted that “with only 8 percent of rural Zambia connected to an electrical grid, our distributed green energy solution can significantly increase that level in three years at a fraction of the cost of traditional energy solutions.”

Director of Energy in Zambia’s Enery ministry, Andrew Simwaba, who read remarks on behalf of Zambia’s Minister of Energy, Christopher Yaluma, at the launch expressed pleasure at the solution being launched in the country.

Zambia’s Revenue Authority also notified World Panel Zambia Ltd. that its application for zero customs and VAT has been approved.

The solution “will help mitigate this power shortage because our people will be able to charge their phones and other devices no matter where they are located,” said Simwaba.

The first shipment has berthed in the country, which contained thousands of World Panel 500 combo-pack units with the patented solar panel technology plus a bundled 5000-milliamp Powerbank and bright ten-bulb LED light. The technology will be distributed in rural and urban COMESA regions.

The company indicated that it plans to ship one million World Panel units to the COMESA region in 2015.

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