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info@sopowerful.org

Frequently Asked Questions

general questions

How is Sopowerful registered?

Sopowerful is registered in the Netherlands as a foundation (Stichting). We are an officially recognized public benefit organization, carrying the ANBI designation from the Dutch Tax Administration. Find our details here.

Sopowerful operates on a non-profit basis, in practice as a ‘project developer’ or ‘implementer’. We select the project, arrange funding, contract local partners, supervise implementation and put everything together for long-term impact of the systems we implement. Read more about our approach here.

Malawi and Tanzania, located in South-Eastern Africa, are both countries with a low rate of electrification (13% and 33% respectively). This means the vast part of the population, especially outside the cities, has no access to reliable electricity.

As an individual, it is very easy to support our mission with a financial donation, by becoming a Sunray. Each and everyone of us has a network of friends, colleagues and family that can be motivated to take part as well!
If you have specific skills and some time to dedicate, we can connect and verify the opportunity to involve you as a volunteer.
If you represent a company (or any other kind of organization), please reach out to explore the potential for a partnership.

Because Sopowerful is recognized as public benefit organization, donations may be partially or fully deducted from taxable income (for individuals) or taxable profit (for companies). Please verify this with your tax-advisor, or feel free to contact us with any questions regarding this topic.

Upon installation and successful commissioning of a solar system, the beneficiary (a school, a clinic, etc.) becomes owner of and responsible for the system. Sopowerful officially hands-over the ownership, but retains the right to environmental attributes/certificates.

The ‘Sunray program’ is a continuous Crowdfunding campaign that enables individuals to support our mission with an on-going donation starting from €0,50 per day. One of the unique features of this way of giving is that 100% of each donation is used exclusively for the implementation of a solar system (and not for any operational costs or our organization). Read more about ‘Sunrays’ here.

Sopowerful clearly distinguishes between operational costs and project costs. Funding from our Partners is split between these two cost-centers once they come in. Thanks to this we can allocate a pre-agreed part of the funding to cover the costs of running the organization. The main part of the funding resulting from our partnerships, as well as 100% of the income resulting from our Sunrays (Crowdfunding) is dedicated to cover project costs.

The main part of the funding resulting from our partnerships, as well as 100% of the income resulting from our Sunrays (Crowdfunding) is dedicated to cover project costs.

We interact and get to know the beneficiary during our ‘assessment phase’, in which we determine the needs and potential for a project. The beneficiaries of our projects are involved from the very first steps of the project and in every step of the process. 

We get in touch with (potential) project beneficiaries following our proactive search for suitable projects on the ground, through our network, or when a beneficiary reaches out to us. The most important selection criterium is the level of local ownership in a project.  

We put effort in communicating the importance and benefits of the solar installations to the communities, as well as transferring a sense of ‘ownership’, which plays an important role in the avoidance of theft and vandalism.

When possible, we organize an education session for villagers in which the functioning of the solar system, as well as solar energy in general, are taught in the local language.

Doubts about donations, info about us...

What can we help you find?

Please, contact us if you do not find your answer: info@sopowerful.org