Iloilo health center energized by solar power

Barangay Polopiña residents being checked up during the OMF electrification event. – Contributed photo

One Meralco Foundation (OMF), the social development arm and corporate foundation of Manila Electric Co., has provided solar power assistance to an off-grid health center in Iloilo province, paving the way for better health care services for nearly 4,000 residents.

The 1-kilowatt peak (KWp) photovoltaic system for the Barangay Polopiña health center will help power equipment that require electricity, such as nebulizers for patients with asthma, dopplers for pregnant women and cold storage for medicine and vaccines. A photovoltaic system is composed of solar panels that produce electricity. This system also provides sufficient light and ventilation in the health care center.

“With electricity access, our barangay health care workers are now able to use equipment that are lacking during the absence of electricity,” Ferdinand Geluz, OMF trustee and Meralco first vice president and chief commercial officer, said in a statement. “In the coming years, One Meralco Foundation will continue these electrification programs in the hopes of reaching more remote communities with the intention of providing this basic necessity to our countrymen,” he added.

Local health workers thanked Meralco for the aid, noting that their medical services could now be expanded for emergency response and maternity care for pregnant women. Aside from energizing rural health centers, OMF’s electrification program also covers off-grid public schools, low-income households in the Meralco franchise area, water access as well as agriculture and livelihood programs.