NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

In the sprawling refugee camp that now dominates the desert landscape of Azraq in Jordan, many refugees have lived without consistent access to power for more than a year. The protracted nature of the Syrian civil war means that those working in the camp are looking for long-term solutions to this and other challenges — a focus of many on World Refugee Day.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and its partner, the IKEA Foundation, are hoping they’ve found a way to provide power to the camp’s 35,000 residents — from the sun.

As part of its Brighter Lives for Refugees campaign, the IKEA Foundation began offering solar lamps to residents in Azraq, which became essential for everything from cooking and studying, to safe access to water and sanitation.