An Giang: Creativity helps Khmer households escape poverty

By supporting the installation of solar panels on cultivated areas with suitable spacing, Khmer farmers earn ‘double profit’ from having electricity sold to the national grid and earning revenue. imported from vegetable production. The model opens up prospects for sustainable poverty reduction in areas with a large number of ethnic Khmer.
Benefit harmony

Stemming from the research on the model combining agricultural production and solar power in 2018, the Green Innovation and Development Center (GreenID) continues to do field research to pilot the model in An Giang province. The selected place is the cultivated land of Mr. Chau Hon’s family, Khmer household in An Hoa hamlet (Chau Lang commune, Tri Ton). The model was implemented by GreenID and Climate Sense Co., Ltd. (Climate Sense) from May 2020, with the support of the Management Board of the Sustainable Energy Development Project in An Giang province, Department of Agriculture and Development. Tri Ton district rural area and Chau Lang Commune People’s Committee. The model is designed according to the standards of rooftop solar power installed on construction works, tree-growing houses and instructions of EVN (Vietnam Electricity) with a capacity of 45Kwp, installed on an area of ​​400m2. of Mr. Chau Hon’s family. The model is completed and the grid is connected in December 2020. To ensure the efficiency of the plants underneath, the solar panels are designed with the right spacing, to ensure the growth of the plant variety. This is considered the first model with tripartite cooperation (people, businesses and non-profit organizations). The benefit sharing mechanism is discussed, agreed and harmonized among the participants. Agricultural production and sub-system farming activities are calculated and tested as soon as the system is completed with a number of short-term crops to assess growth and economic efficiency of the system. paradigm. The solar model associates agricultural production with double efficiency According to GreenID, the profit from the model will be divided among the parties according to the proportion of capital contribution invested. The disbursement period for Climate Sense is in the first 10 years because Climate Sense capital is meant to support initial investment. After 10 years, the whole system will be handed over to GreenID and households for management and use. After 20 years, GreenID will hand over to households full ownership. This model is expected to bring many multilateral financial benefits to the participants and facilitate as well as a typical model to call for more investors to expand. Farmers are excited Since commissioning in early 2021, the power generation portion is monitored remotely on the phone application. As recorded, the sunniest day, the model produces about 246Kwh of electricity and the lowest is 43Kwh on the day. On average, the system produces 103 kWh of electricity per day (as of April 7, 2021). Every month, electricity will record the indexes and payout on the amount of electricity sold to the investor’s account. From January to March 2021, the project has sold more than 4,471 kWh of electricity, equivalent to over VND 22 million. In this joint venture model, all participants benefit from the project. All profits earned from the sale of electricity to EVN will be distributed to the parties to the investment according to the profit sharing structure agreed upon by the parties in the joint venture cooperation contract. Joining the model, Mr. Chau Hon’s family and the project planted some new crops to test new crops for research. From January to April 2021, the research team collaborated with the project team and farmers to experiment with water spinach and cucumber to calculate the suitability of plants under solar panels and compare them with planting. outside. In fact, plants in the shade under solar panels grow well because they retain moisture, avoid direct sunlight due to extremely sunny weather and improved farming techniques. “I planted cucumber from February to 2021, the plants grown in a greenhouse under the panels outperform the control field outside, the fruiting rate is quite stable. Currently, my family harvests more than 30kg of cucumber per day. The fruit has a nice design and is long, fresh and delicious, highly appreciated by customers ”- Mr. Chau Hon said excitedly. Deputy Director of Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Truong Kien Tho said that the combination of agricultural production and solar power is a new model, showing initial efficiency. “When looking at the pictures of the panels covering the agricultural land, many people think it is impossible to cultivate. However, when choosing suitable crops, productivity and quality are higher. In the same arid land, farmers can keep an income from farming while also earning a monthly electricity bill. This is a model that can help many farmers to escape poverty sustainably and get better-off ”- Mr. Tho assessed. The model of installing solar cells combining agricultural production below helps generate additional revenue from selling solar power, making the most of arable land to increase income, and reduce conflicts in use. use of land resources. Some crops benefit from increased coverage, resulting in higher yields and better product quality