Manzini – The Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital has invested in solar power generation with the intention of cutting grid electricity costs in half, thanks to the Italian government aid.
It follows this week’s transfer of the installed 1-megawatt solar photovoltaic system, which aims to drastically reduce the hospital’s reliance on fossil fuels while enhancing energy reliability and cutting operational expenses. The Italian ambassador to Eswatini, His Excellency Gabriele Annis, was in attendance and was greeted by acting prime minister Thulisile Dladla and minister of tourism and environmental affairs Jane Mkhonta-Simelane during the ribbon-cutting.
Mazwi Mavuso, Chief Executive Officer of Eswatini Nazarene Health Institutions (ENHI), stated that the RFM hospital amassed an annual electrical bill of roughly E2.4 million (USD148,000), with a monthly bill of around E500,000, which they intend to considerably reduce. 
According to Mavuso, 20 per cent of these savings, approximately E480,000, will be used to maintain the system while reinvesting the remainder in the servicing of patients. The RFM hospital receives 350,000 patients with about 15,000 hospital admissions, 4,000 births and approximately 500 outpatient consultations daily.
The hospital will contribute to the country’s carbon-cutting goals, as healthcare stakeholders agreed that RFM should benefit from this round of funding. The RFM boasts a central location within the country, operating in Manzini for over a century.
“They looked at the experience of the hospital and the number of patients it sees daily, servicing about 40% of the population.
‘So, any investment happening in the hospital benefits the country,’ Mavuso said, summing it up in that the solar plant will eliminate power interruptions during ‘very sensitive’ procedures, including operating theatres, the ICU, laboratories and diagnostic equipment as well as the reduction of the electricity bill.
“This investment ensures that the hospital should avoid shocks to the energy supply in any way.”
ENHI owns RFM and 22 clinics countrywide.
