When Cameroun closes EDF Pulse Africa first edition with flare

To finish the African challenge on a high note and engrave the event’s magnitude in people’s mind until next edition, EDF Cameroon though big. Firstly, EDF’s concession has bet on the high quality of the profiles appointed to assess the candidates’ speeches. And that is why sixteen noticeable jury members sat around the table to express their opinion in light of their previous experience. Among them, four ministers volunteered to pay a tribute to the Cameroonian entrepreneurial dynamism. Achille Bassilekin III, Minister of SME, Social Economy and Handicrafts ; George Elanga Obam, Minister of Decentralization and Local Development ; Gaston Eloundou Essomba, Minister of Water and Energy ; Célestine Ketcha Courtes, Minister of Housing and Urban Development, were able to recognize projects with pertinent and necessary solutions for local development, thanks to their acute knowledge of the Cameroonian landscape. To help them in their selection process, several directors working for important companies and organisms were by their side: the Cameroonian Société Générale, ENEO, the World Bank in Cameroon or even Polytechnique School of Yaoundé.

Mentioning “a long and hard jury deliberation session because of an excellent panel of projects” might sound as an obvious and fake description. But in this case, intensity and zeal are the best adjectives to evoke the debate that occurred in the evening. Just think about it: the 16 jury members spent over an hour to express their opinion about 11 projects! Eventually, they came to an agreement and spoke with one voice when they crowned Frigo Solaire Photothermique (ie Photothermical Solar Fridge).

Frigo Solaire Photothermique success is due to a double benefit: keeping food fresh at lower costs and facilitating the access to pharmaceuticals in remote areas. We can wonder: what is so different about that fridge? Actually, it fully uses solar energy with a combined thermic and luminous system. The refrigerator completely enhances the solar energetic potential’s value because the excess production can be used to light up a house or to charge electronic devices. As this is a solution that partly solves the electricity access issue, Frigo Solaire Photothermique is willing to spread its solution everywhere: public organisms, NGOs and households, either they are situated in Cameroon or soon in all Central Africa.

This Cameroonian step marks the end of EDF Pulse Africa Tour’s 2019 edition. Now that Frigo Solaire Thermique has been appointed to represent Cameroon, the seven finalists’ names are known. This ultimate halt have once again reminded the aims of such a challenge: show the African entrepreneurial dynamic and enable the emergence of new opportunities for the entrepreneurs by gathering key ecosystems actors. Next step: the Expert Committee. It will analyse the other candidates’ project to begin the finalist’s selection. Let’s wait and see what will happen then.