The Solar Cooker Test in South Africa

This test started in 1996. It is a joint venture of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) and the South African Department of Minerals and Energy (DME), funded by DME and the German Ministry for Economic Co-operation and Development (BMZ).

• In a first phase, the acceptance of seven different types of solar cookers for families and institutions was studied in three different areas (rural, semi-urban, and urban).



• In a second phase, the prerequisites for market introduction were studied.

What happened to the solar test cookers from 1996?

The families participating since 1996 in the acceptance study had the possibility to buy "their" cooker at the end of the test period. Nearly all of them did so.

It is interesting to know the evolution of solar cooker use over a long period of time; therefore a study involving these families was carried out in February 2000.

The following results were observed:

• most of the cookers are still in use,



• some repairs were necessary,



• solar cooker use is highest in an isolated village.

The enquiry was carried out by means of questionnaires.