Improving Health Systems Through Renewable Energy

Healthcare is one of the most important service industries in any nation’s economy. So, it is no wonder that one of the Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG3) targets is to ensure universal health coverage and access to essential health services. However, with energy access being a major challenge to the global industry, improving health systems through renewable energy seems like the most viable solution, given that most countries facing this problem are in the global south, where solar radiation is optimum.

Healthcare systems worldwide have varying energy deficiencies, and with energy as an impediment to proper service delivery, rural health facilities in developing countries are the most affected. This is because infrastructure costs connecting rural areas to on-grid electricity are quite expensive. If these costs are somehow provided for, the tariffs would be too expensive for the rural customers to bear. For this reason, healthcare facilities in developing countries still struggle with basic energy needs such as lighting and the ability to power medical equipment.

For economically advanced countries, the healthcare energy needs revolve around increasing efficiency, reducing energy consumption and lowering operating costs while monitoring the environmental impact of these activities. However, improving health systems through renewable energy would address the challenges for developing and developed countries.

The event of the Corona Virus pandemic further emphasized the need for the global health community to employ renewable energy sources. In Nigeria, for example, when the lockdown occurred, the grid faced challenges as the electricity demand surpassed the supply. This change in energy consumption pattern was noticed worldwide as more people needed to use energy due to the stay-at-home restrictions at the pandemic’s peak.

Such a change in energy consumption strains critical sectors such as healthcare. This is because demand increases translate into reduced energy quotas for primary sectors and more frequent power cuts. Hence, a reduced supply or a complete lack of electricity access to health facilities is quite disastrous. Also, the most available energy generation alternatives are not the safest. Using generators, for example, increases carbon monoxide, which is terrible for the environment, poisonous to patients and costly.

A recent International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) publication revealed that about a billion people rely on health facilities with no energy access. Therefore, improving health systems through renewable energy holds a lot of benefits for the global community. This is because solutions can be specifically tailored to meet energy needs while harnessing the resources available and ensuring the productive use of energy. Using renewable energy to address energy challenges for health systems would also enable access to basic healthcare while bridging the energy deficit gap, especially for countries in Africa.

For example, in a bid to improve economic sustainability in Nigeria, the Federal Government (FG), in 2021, announced a plan to electrify 304 healthcare facilities and schools across the country. Also, through the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), a Photovoltaic (PV) system with a backup battery was installed at Cottage Hospital in Uke community, Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa state. The installation has resulted in more patients being attended to daily and nightly.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), ‘Without electricity, many life-saving interventions simply cannot be undertaken’. However, the simplest procedures cannot be carried out in most rural health facilities. In most cases, lighting is so poor that patients can only be attended to during the day. So, it is important to find alternative and cleaner energy sources to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages. Hence, diversifying the energy mix and improving health systems through renewable energy is the way forward for a healthier, more sustainable future.