Jim Ayala shares his goal of making electricity accessible to millions of Filipinos in rural communities through solar energy

JA1.jpgChildren welcome HSSi in one of their on-the-ground installations

Self-sufficiency for the less-privileged is what Jaime “Jim” Ayala had in mind when he made the jump from his high-paying corporate job to creating a social enterprise seven years ago. He founded Hybrid Social Solutions Inc (HSSi) in 2010 which aims to provide solar-powered devices to marginalised and remote communities in the Philippines. He also established the Stiftung Solarenergie Philippines (StS), a non-profit foundation that targets rural progress and povery alleviation through different applications of solar energy and donates to schools, clinics, and other foundations.

“Our goal is to empower them by meeting their needs that are largely neglected, such as access to electricity. There are about 20 million Filipinos who have no electricity or always experience blackouts,” says Ayala. His social enterprise ventures and its extraordinary work have earned him the prestigious Ernst & Young Social Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2012 for the Philippines and put his name on the list of the Schwab Foundation’s 24 World Social Entrepreneurs of the Year in 2013.

JA2.jpgJim Ayala with solar-powered devices that can help millions of Filipinos in rural areas

HSSi already has 200,000 people using their solar-powered systems nationwide, which includes solar lamps, mobile phone chargers, power boxes for schools and health centres, and other home devices geared towards the improvement of off-the-grid communities.  The company scouts for hard-to-reach places in provinces to bring their devices, sometimes even needing to cross more than 20 rivers and a number of mountains, and enlist the help of their microfinance partners to make purchasing the devices more affordable for the residents.

Ayala explains, “We make sure to provide financing so that with our units, they are able to save and earn more money. I realised that the better way to help them is to understand what they need and work with them to get it instead of just doling out money or other resources whenever I see them. I want them to be independent. When they have our solar-powered devices, they save money by not spending on electricity.”

Every HSSi unit has its standalone system that includes a solar panel installed on the roof, a long cord that goes all the way into the house, and different types of chargers for different types of mobile phones (Android, iOS, Windows). There are also bigger systems that have a PowerPoint projector for a school setting and lights for health centres. Solar panels can last for up to 15 to 20 years while the devices themselves can last beyond 10 years of continuous use with proper maintenance from more than 400 solar technicians.

Change Has Come

JA3.jpgA Mobile Solar Suitcase that can charge emergency equipment

Residents used to fuel their lamps with kerosene, an expensive and highly-flammable substance, emitting dark smoke and tiring the eyes easily. Fortunately, this is no longer the case in communities that HSSi has already reached. They’ve let go of using kerosene lamps and switched to the much safer solar-powered lights, ticking off one of HSSI’s goalsimproving the people’s quality of life.

The positive changes are evident in the household. Families now have bright solar-powered lights, enabling them the opportunity to use electric fans, watch TV, and charge their phones without going to paid charging stations in town. It also makes for a safer home where parents don’t have to worry about their children getting burnt by kerosene. Users of solar lights cough 53 per cent less compared to when they were using kerosene, and incident of fires and burns have gone down from 40 per cent to no cases at all.

Livelihood also benefits as productivity increases. They can now work longer at night without tiring their eyes too much. A married couple in Mindoro who grow lanzones trees earned Php60,000 more in one season, their best harvest yet. They used their solar light to ward away the fruitbats that eat 40 per cent of the fruits. Fishermen who use solarpowered fishing light attractors caught three to four more kilos of fish and increased their revenues by Php9,500 per month. Although the submersible unit costs Php27,000, the additional income pays for the attractor itself. This is where HSSi’s micro financing comes in.

JA4.jpgA T’boli mother in Surallah, South Cotabato

“Almost everyone in the community can’t shell out that big amount, so they get a loan from our microfinance partners with flexible payments. They can pay daily, weekly, or monthly. If they are not sure with the equipment, they can rent daily. We partner with existing fishermen associations in barangays, they can buy from us with the help of our finance partners, and rent it out  to their member fi shermen,” says Ayala, adding that this applies to purchasing other units as well.

Children’s education has also improved. “The teachers told us they used to not give homework because the kids will not be able to do it anyway as they have no light at night. Now, the students gamely do their homeworks and the parents have seen a more positive attitude towards studying. They study 45 per cent longer and their grades went up,” Ayala shares happily. He recalls a school that always placed last in the National Achievement Tests (NAT), but when they received the solar lights and the solar suitcases with projectors and other school paraphernalia, they shot up to number one. “It goes to show that you just need the right resources. They have the capacity but they couldn’t demonstrate it. The principal and the kids told us, ‘We always knew we were just as smart as the other kids, now we can finally show it.’”

JA5.jpgThe Sun King Home 60

One of Stiftung’s and HSSi’s most innovative projects is the Solar Library where students can rent solar lights instead of books. Elementary schools assign a “solar librarian” to oversee the renting and collection of the solar lights donated by StS. The children can bring a unit home to use for their studies and return it after a week. The solar librarian collects a peso a day from the students to fund the maintenance of the lights, and just like with books, there are fines if the lights  are returned late.

There are now about 300 solar libraries in remote places such as Busal in Tayabas, Quezon, Leyte, Davao del Sur, and Cebu. One memorable solar library for Ayala was in B’laan, Sarangani, where they had to cross 27 rivers to donate solar lights to 820 students.

When Ayala was in the shiny corporate world, he thought that the only way to  help the poor was to constantly provide. “I later discovered that the people have to be the one to help themselves. I want to help them acquire the mindset that they can do something to move up.”

Ayala admits that they are not even close to reaching the 20 million Filipinos who have no access to electricity, or who have probably never seen a light bulb in their lives, but they are on their way. The shining eyes of the people they helped and the improvement they saw on these people’s lives are unforgettable. “That is the power of light,” he says.