DIB's eco-village project in South Asia aims to reduce poverty while limiting greenhouse gas emissions. In Sri Lanka, DIB's partner IDEA works with the eco-village concept by promoting the Anagi cooker, among other things.
The Anagi cooker is a ceramic cooker which is cheaper to produce than a traditional cooker. It is fuel efficient and meticulously designed to ensure a sustainable and hygienic way of cooking. 90% of all households in Sri Lanka's rural areas use biomass in the form of firewood as a fuel source for cooking. Instead of replacing the largest fuel source, biomass consumption is minimized to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In this way, the stove is an environmentally friendly solution that is adapted to local and rural conditions, needs and prerequisites.
The combustion chamber on the stove is designed to hold coconut shells, palm leaves and wood. In traditional stoves more smoke is often generated than is the case with the Anagi stove, which instead of smoke forms a flame. This results in rising temperatures, making cooking faster and reducing smoke formation. The hot gases produced in the stove are passed down through the bottom of the two pots, and the construction ensures an even distribution of heat in the stove.
User benefits
The Anagi cooker is a less expensive alternative to the traditional cooker. It costs approx. 18 DKK and lasts between 1.5-3 years depending on how much it is used. Local stove users often describe it as convenient and more efficient. The special design makes cooking pots easier and faster, and the two pot holes allow you to cook more dishes in less time. Furthermore, reduced tree consumption means that less time is spent looking for firewood in the forest or less money to buy it. They therefore save time and money by using the Anagi cooker.
Der er også sundhedsforbedrende effekter ved Anagien. Eftersom at de fleste køkkener i landområderne mangler en skorsten eller anden ventilation, bliver huset ofte forurenet med usunde gasser fra madlavningen. Det er vurderet at ca. 4 millioner mennesker årligt dør pga. høje mængder af carbonmonxid (CO) og andre partikler i køkkenet. På grund af den traditionel kønsopdeling af husholdningsarbejde i det meste af Sri Lanka, er kvinderne den bærende kraft i husstanden, hvilket gør dem ansvarlige for madlavning og børnepasning. Det betyder derfor, at det er kvinder og børn, som hele tiden udsættes for indendørs luftforurening. Udledningen af de giftige carbonmonoxid-gasser betyder, at børnenes vejrtrækning bliver påvirket, før de overhovedet har udviklet deres lunger. Dette kan lede til nedsætning af lungernes funktionalitet eller måske en kronisk lungesygdom. Anagi-komfuret minimerer den indendørs forurening, eftersom at det reducerer røgdannelse, og er derfor i det lange løb med til at forebygge lungesygdomme og kræft. Et røgfrit miljø forbedrer generelt familiens velvære. Den bemærkelsesværdige reducering af madlavningstid betyder at mindre tid nu skal bruges i et usundt tilrøget miljø, og der er ekstra tid til andre vigtige ting som f.eks. at tage sig af børnene.
- The environmental benefits: A study by IDEA shows that the Anagi cooker reduces emissions by approx. 111-266 kg CO2 per person per year. This means that if 100,000 stoves are replaced with Anagi, then greenhouse gas emissions from these households will be reduced by 42%. A well-constructed and properly operated Anangi stove will use up to 30% less firewood than traditional open fireplaces, which in the long run can help reduce deforestation. The opportunity to reduce deforestation is especially important for a country like Sri Lanka, where only 20% of the total land area is covered by forested areas.
- The social-economical benefits: With high demand for Anagi cookers also follows a high delivery rate. This creates a natural place for the local potters, who have the opportunity to produce the requested Anagi cookers in order to create a stable income and a healthy financial situation.
- Time and fuel saving: IDEA conducted a demonstration by Anagi in September 2016 to promote the stove in a local community. There were obvious differences between the traditional three-stone stove and the Anagi stove. It took 56 min. and 1000g firewood to make a meal on the traditional stove. On the Anagi stove it took 41 min. and a consumption of 650g firewood. Thus, there was a time saving of 15 min. and a fuel saving of 350g. These results have been used by IDEA staff to calculate how much a family can save by installing an Anagi cooker. If a family saves on average 15 min. per. meal per day, they save 6.4 hours a week and a full 25.6 hours in a month. This is a significant reduction in cooking time that the woman in the family can now spend on other things. The Anagi cooker is a good and sustainable solution. It is both time-saving, has less fuel consumption and creates healthier cooking conditions.
Read more about DIB's eco-village project here.
