Partnership between BIOFUND, BCI and the Santuário Bravio de Vilanculos has brought an innovative solution to more than 100 households and dozens of school-aged children.

At the end of 2025, the Santuário Bravio de Vilanculos (SBV) hosted the inauguration of the OffGridBox system installed at the Chingongoene Primary School and Community Centre, an initiative financed by the Cartão bio, a partnership between the Foundation for the Conservation of Biodiversity (BIOFUND) and Banco Comercial e de Investimentos (BCI).

Located inside a conservation area in Cabo São Sebastião, Queuene, in Vilanculos district, the community of Chingongoene is deeply rural and depends almost entirely on natural resources for survival. The village is not connected to the national electricity grid and has only one communal water borehole, which makes access to basic services a major challenge for around 100 households (480 people, including 240 women and 215 school-aged children).

The project “Community Development Initiative for the Chingongoene Primary School and Community Centre”, implemented by the Santuário Bravio de Vilanculos, was designed to respond to these challenges by using the primary school as a true community hub. Through the installation of a containerised solution known as OffGridBox, the project aims to:

• provide sustainable electrical power,
• make treated drinking water available,
• create income-generation opportunities for the community.

The OffGridBox operates using renewable energy sources and makes it possible to replace kerosene lamps and firewood used for cooking, thereby reducing pressure on natural resources and lowering CO₂ emissions. In addition to supporting the health and well-being of families, this change contributes to biodiversity conservation within the protected area.

One of the innovative elements of the initiative is the creation of a community cooperative, ideally led by women, which will manage the energy and water kiosk using an affordable Pay-As-You-Go model. In this way, the community gains a new stream of collective income to fund small local projects that directly benefit women, youth and other vulnerable groups.

The primary school will be one of the main beneficiaries. The new electricity connection will allow teachers and environmental education partners, such as the Marine Megafauna Foundation, to use computers, printers, projectors, video and even Virtual Reality tools, significantly improving the quality of classes and conservation education. School attendance is also expected to increase, thanks to the role of the school as a centre for gathering, learning and services for the whole community.

Through the Cartão bio and its partnership with BCI, BIOFUND is thus reinforcing its commitment to promoting innovative solutions that bring together biodiversity conservation, social inclusion and sustainable community development in and around conservation areas.

Click on the link to learn more about the Cartão bio: https://www.biofund.org.mz/en/projects/bio-card-2/