ISLAMABAD [ACTED News] - An initiative aimed at utilizing hydropower in order to provide affordable electricity to a remote flood-affected community in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is currently being undertaken by ACTED with support from the Japanese Embassy. The goal is to construct a micro hydropower station which will provide enough energy to power two light bulbs and two fans in each of the households in a village in Upper Dir thus helping the community improve its living conditions, livelihood opportunities, access to education and entertainment, as well as build better community resilience in the face of future disasters.
Hydropower is said to be the biggest source of renewable power generation in the world. A hydropower station has an economic life of 40 to 80 years. With an efficiency rate of about 90%, hydropower is one of the most reliable, pocket-friendly and green sources of energy. Pakistan is rich in terms of its endowment of usable hydropower resources (estimated at 41,045 megawatts) but unfortunately most of it remains unused.