Rinchi
TechInAfrica – A Nigerian-based tech company, SkyRocket, through its founder, Oluwatobi Oyinlola, introduced an innovation to reduce the use of forests as the main source of cooking energy. The technology is called Pay-As-You-Cook, allowing consumers to buy cooking gas via Mobile Money.
The cylinder gas was installed with a meter as a monitor of the quantity of the remaining gas used. Consumers who want to use the technology must pay for the service through Mobile Money, that’s why the technology called “Pay As You Cook”.
The founder of SkyRocket, Oyinlola, explained about the technology that he introduced, “We are going to start by Rwf300 per day, which you can pay on Mobile Money and have access to cook in the morning and evening. That’s very cheap for a person who needs gas to cook and doesn’t have to return to charcoal.”
Oyinlola further explained that the cylinder gas has a smart valve on top of it. It will count how much gas you have used and calculate the amount of money you have to pay for the service via Mobile Money. The main target of the technology is those who cannot afford cylinders.
Oyinlola said that his company will partner with local LPG suppliers while the technology itself is provided by SkyRocket. A few weeks ago, SkyRocket was running more than 100 pilots sample in one location in Kigali. The next few weeks, people could visit nearby gas suppliers to sign for it.
Reportedly, about 65% of Rwandans are still using charcoal for cooking while at the same time the consumption of liquid gas is increased. They still use charcoal for cooking is because the cost of liquid gas in the market is fairly higher.
For the record, a gas cylinder cost around Rwf65,000 while one kilogram of gas in Kigali is around Rwf1000 – Rwf1400. Oyinlola said that Pay-As-You-Cook technology he offers is targeting those who already have gas cylinders but cannot afford the gas liquid.
