Last year AllaAfrica mentioned we might get clean energy from the sun. Such a fantastic opportunity, isn’t it? Consider the decrease in solar panel cost over the last 15 years. And you will find out that solar energy gets much cheaper than the thermal power we got accustomed to. Only three percent of the electricity worldwide comes from solar energy. It’s time to change this situation. How to do that, let’s discuss in the article.

Why invest in the solar energy

The population in Zimbabwe is growing. Right now, the total population reaches 15 178 979 people. It demonstrates a 16.2% increase since 2012. 61.4% of people live in rural areas where it is almost impossible to bring connectivity, despite the national trend towards globalization.

The problem of electrical power relates to so many people. For example, in 2017, only 44.48% of citizens had access to electricity. Indeed, the trend is optimistic; in 2020, power was accessible at 52.75%. But, according to a World Banks survey, Zimbabwe desperately needs electricity supply and telecommunication services. Also, the survey showed a hostile situation with the frequency and duration of electricity outages.

Way to recovery

Since 2016, solar energy has remained one of the most promising areas in Zimbabwe. It can supply 10 thousand gigawatt hours of electricity annually. It’s much more than the total power production in the whole country. However, Zimbabwe needs funding to adopt this technology.

To adopt off-grid power, the following measures have to be included:

• To work efficiently, such policies should be adjusted that introduce targets, milestones, and processes of monitoring and assessment for renewable energy types:
• The common standards for the components of solar energy delivery have to be outlined;
• It is necessary to think about the enforcement mechanisms for guarantees to protect the organizations and institutions that purchase such solar components;
• Assistance must be given to the suppliers.

Green tech will work not only for businesses but also for individuals. For example, citizens could use smart thermostats to control their energy consumption while they are not at home. They may opt for a solar-powered security camera placed outdoors and ready to lower their electricity bills. Purifying water bottles, as mentioned in ExpressVPN’s green tech guide, will be helpful for those people who wish to use less single-use plastic not to contaminate the environment.

Sounds cool, but it’s not enough.

Why do we need to protect green tech?

When we buy systems to protect the environment, we must protect them from hacking attacks.

As KPMG found out, in Zimbabwe, the business environment frequently faces cyber attacks. Sometimes their unauthorized users access their online platforms, with operations disrupted. They also face data corruption and personal data stealing. Often, DDoS attacks make it impossible for business websites to run efficiently. This problem refers to the green tech sector, too.

After the customer has bought a new technology, the next step is to take cybersecurity measures. It’s a good idea to develop documents on policies and define procedures on how to control cybersecurity processes. Next, checking if IT assets are relevant, tracking cyber threats, and conducting basic security controls is essential. It’s also crucial to use critical security patches. Finally, don’t forget the re-configurations and system hardening of critical platforms, and do back-up with essential data recovery.