Power 4 All, technology partner provider of One Meralco Foundation continues to reach far-flung public schools amidst the Covid-19 pandemic by energizing Off-grid public schools located in the province of Western Samar, these are the list of Elementary Schools; TAKUT, BUENAVISTA, COROCAWAYAN, SEVILLA, VILLAHERMOSA, BALATGUTI and ILIJAN located in the island municipality of Sto. Niño. These seven (7) island public schools are energized with a portable, plug and play 1kW Mission Solar Power Station each. Along with this each classroom is installed with two 6w LED Bulbs and 1 bulb along the hallway for the schools’ security.
During our team’s actual assessment last November 2019, the school teachers mentioned that the island can only enjoy electricity from four (4) in the afternoon to ten (10) in the evening from generator sets supplied by local electric cooperatives. During day-time/school hours they use diesel-powered generator sets, which are very costly for them due to the high price of diesel, and when they need to print school presentations, they need to ride a tiny boat going to the mainland. The trip the print shops’ office is treacherous due to the rough sea.
To reach the school, our solar engineers needed to travel for more than a day from Manila to Calbayog City and about two hours of travel via boat to the island.
The school electrification program is a big help to these schools particularly especially during the pandemic time as we shift to online classes and modular learning. The teachers can now prepare the materials needed by the students for the upcoming opening of classes this October without have to risk their lives on a trip to the printer’s.