A micro-hydro programme bringing sustainable energy to a region of Pakistan ravaged by conflict and floods has won an Ashden award for lighting the future
Villages in the foothills of the Hindu Kush mountain range in northern Pakistan are beautiful, dangerous and remote. Close to the Afghan border and far beyond the reach of aid groups and governments, they have long been deprived of technology, ravaged by conflict, and devastated by earthquakes and floods.
But by harnessing the small glacier-meltwater rivers that drop steeply off the soaring mountains, one Pakistani non-profit group is said to be laying the foundations for future peace and prosperity – and bringing hope to some of South Asia’s most marginalised and isolated people.
People used to leave the villages as their studies suffered without electricity. If their needs are met, why leave?