The Green Inc. Blog has an interesting profile of ToughStuff, a small start-up in Africa working on distributing personal solar panels for powering such things as cell phones and small lights:
For decades, governments and non-governmental organizations have been trying to bring electricity to the world’s poorest and most isolated regions through million-dollar donations and large-scale projects.
A small start-up company, headquartered in the Republic of Mauritius off the southeastern coast of Africa, is pursuing what it considers a different tack: a market-based approach, employing local villagers, selling rudimentary solar panels and focusing on small-scale, personal electricity use.