The potentially significant role of microcredit lending programs to foster sustainable energy and economic development in rural communities has been largely overlooked. It has been estimated

[1] that there are 500 million economically active poor in the world, operating microenterprises and small businesses. Virtually all small businesses in rural Africa, including Mozambique, have no access to any financial services. Also, developmental programs are usually financed from non-sustainable government and external donor sources. A sustainable financing paradigm for the rural poor would be one that focuses on a shift from government and donor based systems to self-sufficient and locally owned and managed microfinance institutions, providing voluntary savings and credit services. Only a locally operated finance system will be fully sensitive to the local economic environment such as planting and harvesting cycles, viable collaterals, and valuable in-kind payments.

An essential task in an energy for sustainable development or rural women empowerment program would be to galvanize an integrated community organizing and development program in order to enhance the end-users’ capacity to pay and to ensure that the any potential client-electric cooperative that serves the community attains a substantial cost recovery on their rural electrification investment. Local NGOs and women groups should be taught the fundamentals of economics and drawing from existing models [1], an economics and financing system workshop reflecting local realities should be developed and delivered to NGOs and local groups. They will then become more equipped to organize culturally responsive and sustainable micro finance institutions in their localities to support micro business enterprises as well as renewable energy consumers necessary for the renewable energy sector to thrive.

A thriving market for renewable energy in Mozambique will depend on more than social amenities such as lighting and community facilities. Furthermore, improvement in the quality of life in the rural communities will be illusive without economic empowerment. Rural areas must be able to harness the emerging renewable technology for productive uses in order to generate incomes to improve their living standards. Hitherto, rural development NGOs in Mozambique have failed to recognize energy as a critical economic determinant. They have equally failed to realize that renewable energy technology supply and service can be a viable sector of the economy in the rural communities where they are critically needed. To jumpstart the capacity building effort for the renewable energy business sector in the rural community, seminars on renewable energy based business development is needed. Emphasis should be given to women participation since they are the primary consumers of energy, and are less likely to flee to the urban areas with their new skills after receiving training. These seminars and the fallouts from it can be counted on to improve their economic well being, with the availability of electricity and solar hot water. Not only would they become vendors of solar energy equipment and service

providers, but they would also be able to run repair shops for the equipment by combining the skills acquired from both technical and business trainings. They would also become more able to develop and run micro economic enterprises and cottage industries in such areas as cosmetology, sewing, fishery, and poultry.