Jompy Stove leads charge of EA brigade in World Challenge

A Kenyan stove used in cooking and sterilising water and a project for charging lights with batteries from Rwanda, are among the 12 finalists in the 2010 World Challenge.

Called the Jompy Stove and produced under the Double-Boiled project, this lightweight and inexpensive stove-top device sits between a cooking pot and an open flame to rapidly boil water.

This simple technology could save millions who die from drinking contaminated water.

The “Charge of the Light Brigade” project by Equinox in Rwanda ­ offers a solution to rural villages left in the dark.

The firm behind the innovation has set up its first solar energy kiosk in Gakenke district in Rwanda.

Sealed battery boxes are on constant charge rotation, when the lights dim, villagers can come and swap their box for a fresh one.

From Tanzania came “OK Coral” project by Chumbe Island Coral Park.

It involves local fishermen providing sustainable employment opportunities based on a protection model that pays its way.

The evidence is a string of pristine coral islands that provide refuge for 400 fish species.

In addition, several solar powered eco-lodges host tourists.

According to the organisers of the World Challenge, entries from Denmark, Guatemala, India, Madagascar, Malawi, Mexico, Peru, and Philippines, made it to the final.

Now in its sixth year, the competition is run by BBC World News and Newsweek magazine, in association with Shell.

The World Challenge is a global competition seeking to highlight and reward small businesses around the world that demonstrate enterprise and innovation.

Launched in 2005, the annual competition aims to identify and reward people and businesses bringing economic, social and environmental benefits to local communities through innovation and enterprise at a grassroots level. 

Since its inception, World Challenge has awarded financial grants to 15 projects across the globe.

BBC World News will broadcast six 30-minute programmes profiling each of the World Challenge’s 10 finalists, showing how their projects and businesses are changing lives and local communities.

The finalists will also be profiled in Newsweek magazine.

The audience and readers are then invited to vote online www.theworldchallenge.co.uk — for their favourite project or business from September 27.  Voting closes on November 12.

$20,000 grant

The winner will be announced at an awards ceremony in Amsterdam on November 30 and will receive a $20,000 grant from Shell to invest in their project, while the two runners-up will each receive $10,000.

From Malawi is the “In a Nutshell” programme by The Full Belly Project helping to improve life in developing countries, an Africa-wide project to promote easy-to-make and easy-to-maintain technologies to improve agricultural-output sustainability.

The “One Reef at a Time” project by Blue Ventures in Madagascar ­ offers researchers and volunteers the chance to work with local communities to protect the reefs using sustainable marine conservation areas.

Blue Ventures project — home to both the world’s fourth largest coral reef and a rejuvenated octopus fishing industry — is working with local communities to make sustainable livelihoods a reality.

From Denmark is the “Africa: Cyber Capital” by MYC4 ­that invite people worldwide to connect directly with African entrepreneurs who cannot obtain capital to develop their businesses, allowing African enterprise to attract investment at an interest rate that they are willing to pay.

“A Class Apart” by the Tecnico Maya Vocational School in Guatemala is creating better employment and education opportunities in Comalapa. 

A popular park has already been created, but the goal now is to create a mixed academic and vocational school, built from recycled waste such as car tyres and bottles.

The Indian project called “Burn After Eating” by Husk Power Systems uses an innovative technology mix to run off-grid mini power stations fired by rice husks — a by-product that would otherwise be thrown away. 

In the state of Bihar in India, an estimated 50,000 villagers are lighting up with bio-power.

From Mexico came “Saving From a Rainy Day” by Isla Urbana which is developing a simple collection and filtering system which harvests rainwater, mainly using materials from local hardware stores and installed by specially trained local plumbers.

Others were the “Pass it On” organic project from Peru, “The Only Way is Up” water project and the “Growth Cycle” bicycle project from the Phillipines.