Building an Urban Community Energy System in Maputo: Challenges and Opportunities

Abstract

It is becoming more clear that a sustainable energy access in the context of the Global South is far away to be achieved by the most dominant technocratic and economic concept of infrastructure and service provision. The hegemonic of technologic approach in the context of poverty has been compromising access to energy for many people, despite being on grid. These phenomena are common in the informal settlement of Global South metropolises. A markedly disordered network characterized by precarious services and high costs for the low-income population defines the energy landscape of most neighbourhoods in Maputo. Based on the above assumptions, this presentation aims to demonstrate that with the idea of community energy systems powered by renewable energy sources, we can improve access to energy in the Global South while stimulating a sustainable energy transition. In the theoretical field, this article discusses the concept of community in the context of the new participatory democracy as an antithesis of representative democracy and possibility for a full exercise of citizenship. From the assumption of the existence of a localized and spatially determined community this chapter explore the idea that a community can be built and consolidated based on common concerns, challenges and opportunities, taking energy as the mobilizing factor. This presentation is the result of a practical experience that is ongoing in the neighbourhood of Chamanculo, on the outskirts of the city of Maputo in Mozambique, where an experimental laboratory is being implemented with the main stakeholders being the community in partnership with the university.