Thank You for Supporting Solar Cooking in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya (2026 Program Update)
Thank you for helping make the 2026 solar cooking program at Kakuma Refugee Camp possible. Because of your support, 1,578 more people have access to solar cooking with 186 new solar cookers distributed this year. Each solar cooker you help provide is designed to last for 10 years. Over its lifetime, a single cooker can support up to 65,000 individual meals, turning a solar cooker into a long-term source of stability and resilience. That means that these solar cookers are making up to 12 million individual solar-cooked meals possible over their lifetime.
The baseline survey from this year helps us understand more deeply the realities these households continue to face. While families in Kakuma do receive food assistance, rations are often limited. Hellen, a 38-year-old mother of six and an SCI program participant, shared that the solar cooker has helped reduce some of the risks associated with collecting firewood, including exposure to sexual assault.
She explained that it is no longer as dangerous or exhausting for her children to gather firewood or go to neighbors asking for fire. Instead, they are able to sit by the solar cooker and wait for their food to cook safely at home. She further described the financial relief the cooker has provided. Money that was previously spent on firewood can now be used for other household needs, such as buying school supplies for her children or additional food for the family.
Among participating families, 122 orphans were identified, highlighting the vulnerability present within the community. Prior to receiving solar cookers, 69 participants reported experiencing respiratory or eye problems in the previous month due to exposure to cooking smoke. 50 households shared that they had already sought medical care for these conditions. These are daily lived experiences that your support is helping to address by reducing reliance on smoky, traditional cooking fuels.
For many households in Kakuma, cooking is not only a health challenge but also a financial burden. On average, families reported spending about $33 USD on charcoal and firewood, placing ongoing pressure on already limited household resources. Your support helps ease this burden by enabling families to shift part of their cooking needs to solar thermal energy, reducing both cost and dependence on polluting fuels.
When we consider cost, the impact becomes even clearer. The production cost of each solar cooker is approximately $22.37 per year. When including training, follow-up, and post-distribution support, the full program cost is approximately $43.88 per year per solar cooker (or per household). Over the lifetime of each unit, this translates to less than one cent per meal, helping illustrate the efficiency and long-term value of a decade-long investment that continues to deliver daily benefits year after year.
These numbers matter, but what matters more is what they represent. Families are cooking with less smoke in their shelters, making fewer and safer trips to collect firewood—an activity that often exposes women and girls to significant safety risks.
None of this would be possible without your support. As the program continues into 2026 and beyond, your role remains central in helping expand access and strengthen adoption. Thank you for making this work possible, and for helping bring cleaner, safer cooking within reach for thousands of people in Kakuma.
Photo credits: Eco-Impact Hub CBO