Safe kitchens to promote entrepreneurship among women

With the purpose of promoting entrepreneurship among women, and facilitate access to alternative sources of energy in vulnerable areas of four districts in Lima, the project "Gas for Life" adapted 85 popular dining places with semi-industrial stoves, and trained a group of entrepreneurs in the safe use of natural gas. 

Thanks to the project, framed within the PASOS program for social inclusion, the dining places can save up to 50 percent in fuel costs; they have more resources to invest in the quality of raw materials and client services, and are guaranteed safer operations. 

The women who were trained acquired skills for self-management and leadership within their communities, and today they are the main promoters of the benefits of natural gas in their communities. 

Through Cálidda, a company that distributes natural gas in Lima and Callao, in alliance with CAF, Development Bank of Latin America, the remodeled kitchens received free connections to the natural gas service in the districts of San Juan de Lurigancho, El Agustino, Villa María del Triunfo, and San Juan de Miraflores.

Each kitchen is responsible for the payment of the supply, giving Cálidda the possibility of creating a long-term relationship with the clients in a mechanism that helps guarantee the sustainability of the initiative. 

The energy to cook represents close to 90 percent of the consumption of domestic energy in developing countries. However, currently, 85 million people in Latin America depend on biomass to cook their food due to the limited access and high cost of other energy sources.