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Participatory Technology Development in stove manufacture: a case study


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Boiling Point
Front cover of Boiling Point issue 40
Issue 40 (1998) Household energy and health
ArticleParticipatory Technology Development in stove manufacture: a case study
AuthorLucky Lowe


The Stoves and Household Energy Programme of the Intermediate Technology Development Group (ITDG) in Kenya has been evolving since the 1980s. During this time, project staff have been involved in a continuous learning process, developing new approaches to working with a diversity of partners in energy-focussed activities.

[top] [end]What is Participatory Technology Development?

Participatory Technology Development (PTD) cannot be confined to a single definition, and it is difficult to make clear statements about its exact nature. However, this paper aims to describe the approach employed, and the tools which have been developed, to enable Intermediate Technology Kenya (IT Kenya) to claim that it has the skills and approaches to create sustainable development through PTD.

Participatory Technology Development is a process which involves different levels of participation at different stages of a project. These can be described as follows:
  1. Passive participation and information gathering
  2. Participation by consulting those who will benefit
  3. Testing and feedback from beneficiaries
  4. Interactive participation, with development being undertaken by entrepreneurs in the community involved
  5. Self-mobilization; new initiatives being started by the entrepreneurs in the community.

For a technology to be successful, it should incorporate the knowledge, skills, and organisation of the community in which the work is taking place. This paper will look particularly at the project with women potters, NGOs and government agencies in West Kenya, and the development of the Maendeleo Stove (later known as the Upesi Jiko).

It will describe how these participatory steps were followed, and in some cases not followed, during the project. The Maendeleo stove was first produced and disseminated by GTZ staff in collaboration with Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organisation (MYWO), a Kenyan women's community-based organisation. The stove, now known as the Upesi Jiko, is a saleable commodity in the rural market places of West Africa.

[top] [end]1. Passive participation and information gathering: the project origins

The UN conference on New and Renewable Energy, 1981 prompted development agencies to intervene on the supply side (reforestation) and demand side of the energy problem. In Kenya, the government had decided that energy-efficient ways for using biomass fuels for cooking and heating were needed. This was because the supply of fuelwood, the major fuel source available to rural communities in Kenya, was becoming scarce. This case study looks at the technology development where IT Kenya has joined with other groups and individuals to improve systems for stove production and marketing.

[top] [end]2. Participation by consulting those who will benefit: women's groups

It is estimated that Kenya has over 26 000 women's groups. The selection of which groups to work with was done by the Ministry of Agriculture using the following criteria;
  • they should be women
  • they should be potters from Kenya.

Meanwhile, ITDG project proposals were drawn up away from the groups selected; an untenable approach, as inaccurate assumptions were made, and inappropriate approaches were adopted. Also, many of the groups thought that ITDG could offer financial support as well as expertise and chose not to work with ITDG when this proved not to be the case. ITDG changed its strategy to work only with groups who had sought their input directly and to carry out more rigorous research into understanding the issues which the beneficiaries feel are most important.

The long-term success of a project depends very much on the motivation of those involved in a project and the way in which the first contact is made. A project instigated by existing groups will continue long after the outside agency has gone away. Those set up by outside agencies are much more likely to disband once it leaves.

[top] [end]3. Testing and feedback from beneficiaries; stoves testing

The Woodburning Stoves Field Testing project, which began in 1986, sought to involve stove users in technology development. Technicians, working in laboratories on energy efficiency, asked users in six distinct geographical areas to test stoves in their kitchens throughout West Kenya. IT Kenya and the NGO 'Kenya Energy and Environments' (KENGO) fed back the responses from cooks during these field trials.

The Maendeleo stove

The Maendelo stove consists of a baked clay fire-box 'liner', which incorporates a door for fuel and air intake and pot supports. The dimensions of these features were developed to ensure optimum combustion, and to accommodate the range of pot sizes which were commonly in use. This liner was installed in the kitchen or cooking area by setting it in a mud base to form a permanent structure. Figure 2: Paddle mould (ITDG) Figure 1: The Maendeleo stove being made

However, there is no single technical solution which will suit everyone. For example, people who lived in the colder regions of Kenya complained about the 'improved' stoves not giving enough heat to the room. This is because the improved energy efficiency was achieved by reducing the heat 'lost' to the kitchen. Of the stoves tested, the 'Maendeleo' was deemed to be the best technical solution for rural dwellers (see box and Figure 1).

As the market developed, IT Kenya's focus became more marketing oriented, and the staff and project partners' became more aware of the unsatisfied needs and preferences of those using the stoves. It was realised that people did not want to install stoves in rented accommodation and sometimes they wanted to cook outside. They complained that they could not move the Upesi stoves, so the need for a portable version of the Upesi became evident. By covering the ceramic liner in a metal case, a new stove design evolved. The user survey (1994) showed that people would buy the portable stove but thought it was too heavy.
Figure 2: Paddle mould (ITDG)
Figure 2: Paddle mould (ITDG)
As part of the Household Energy Region project, ITDG was demonstrating the use of the paddle mould to produce the liners in Uganda (Figure 2). In a follow-up visit it was found that the women had produced a stove 'liner' with a base without using a paddle mould (the cost of the paddle mould had made it prohibitive) or metal cladding. A further visit found that the Ugandan women had devised their own moulding methods, added ceramic handles and decorations, and had transformed the ceramic liner into a portable ceramic stove (Figure 3).

With ITDG, the Keyo women's group built on this Ugandan design to produce a portable model, omitting the ceramic handles, cladding it in metal and reducing its weight from 18 kg to 11 kg. A member of the Keyo group designed a new mould for the pot rests without IT's intervention and other women's groups were then trained in production of the new design. The Keyo women named this new stove 'Lira' the district of Uganda from which the new design had originated (Figure 4).

The liner is critical in ensuring good energy efficiency. Though people may perceive a need to protect a product design which has been through a lengthy process of research and development, no technology remains unchanged or unchallenged over time. Several innovations have been made to the basic Upesi stove, including the addition of a rear 'oven' space to keep food warm. IT staff are now working with project partners to encourage their creativity in developing new designs, whilst trying to ensure key design features are retained.
Figure 3: Portable, decorated ceramic stove (ITDG)
Figure 3: Portable, decorated ceramic stove (ITDG)


[top] [end]4. Interactive participation: Group Led Action Plan (GLAP)

The Rural Stove West Kenya Action Project was set up by IT Kenya in 1990 to manufacture stoves. It worked with about eight women's groups, and in order to reach a clear mutual understanding of each others objectives, a 'Group Led Action Plan' (GLAP) was determined. It followed the following steps:
  • Introductory session where the group and IT staff establish that each understands the other's interests
  • Group members each purchase and install a stove and express their opinion of the stove in practice
  • Discussion on what will be involved if the group decide to make stoves; this involves the group agreeing to undertake a feasability study
  • Feasibility study, where the market, the raw materials and the organizational capacity are all assessed and discussed
  • Decision time; a realistic decision on whether to proceed is taken jointly by the group and IT Kenya staff
  • Practical planning starts, with a participatory approach adopted by the group
  • Trial production run, looking at organization, record keeping, marketing and quality monitoring

[top] [end]5. Self-mobilization: commercialization

During the early stages of the project, there were three areas on which effort was focussed; technical assistance, marketing skills and raising awareness of the need for fuel conservation. However, it became apparent that if women's groups were to be sustainable, they would need to be commercially viable.
Figure 4: Upesi Lira (ITDG)
Figure 4: Upesi Lira (ITDG)
Initially, removing the subsidy on the stoves proved very unpopular. Those involved in the chain of distribution felt that their roles were being taken away. However, those women who perceived the need for improving their business and marketing skills became the core of a new group of entrepreneurs, known as promoters. Women who wished to continue in manufacture did so, whilst the promoters set up linkages between manufacturers and stockists.

A pricing system enabled each to make a fair profit. Installing the Upesi into a permanent mud base for those who want a fixed stove also generated employment. A brand identity has been adopted to allow purchasers to select the stove because of its high quality.

The criteria for stopping work with women's stove groups has not yet been identified. Instead, it would appear that the focus of activity changes as time goes on; from production to marketing, marketing to transport options, and now to improved kitchens. The Rural Transport programme in West Kenya has been assisting women in finding affordable ways to get their stoves to market - but that's another story.

[top] [end]Contents: Boiling Point 40: Household energy and health

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Household energy, smoke and health - Smoke from biomass and its effects on infants - Health risk caused by domestic smoke - Emissions from high altitude stoves - a case study in Nepal - Biomass smoke and ill-health in India - preliminary results from a national survey - Global network for the health effects of environmental air pollution - Fuels, stoves and indoor air pollution in Jaracuaro, Mexico - Redesign of liquified petroleum gas stove for the blind - How many of these improvements are in your stoves programme - Participatory Technology Development in stove manufacture - a case study - Renewable energy sources in Nigeria- Efficient household energy use in Uttara Kannada District, Karnataka - Research into cooking and heating applications of down-draught stoves - Comparing forestry wood species for the charcoal supply of Antananarivo city, Madagascar



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