Political and Administrative Frame Conditions for Biogas Programmes

Political will and public opinion

The development of biogas technology depends on the political will of donor and recipient governments. It is the task of the governmental and administrative authorities to provide access to the technology and to secure and organize the requisite material, financial and legal basis. According to their political will to promote biogas, governments can play a more or less supportive role in biogas research, information dissemination and regulations for funding, subsidies or tax waving. The formation of a political will does not evolve in a vacuum. Political will and public opinion develop in interrelation. Successful practical examples, encouraging research findings, the use of media to spread information, all these are tools to influence both political will and public opinion.

Sign of the National Biogas Department/National Energy Board in Ghana Photo: Kellner (TBW)

Biogas programs should attempt to lobby for biogas at various entry points of the government system simultaneously. Creating a favorable climate for biogas dissemination depends almost always on a whole range of decision makers. For example:

• The Ministry of Finance will decide on subsidies and tax wavers for biogas users.
• The Ministry of Energy can propose laws regarding the feeding of biogas-produced electricity into the grid. It can also propose financial and other assistance.
• The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock can include biogas in the training curriculum of extension officers and agricultural colleges.
• The Ministry of Education can include biogas in the curricula of high schools and promote the construction of bio-latrines for schools.
• The Ministry of Health can include biogas in the curricula of public health workers and encourage the building of bio-latrines for hospitals.

Simultaneously to political lobbying, PR work is important to influence public opinion:

• Radio Programs are an effective means in rural areas to familiarize the population with basics of biogas technology.
• Articles in Print Media usually reach members of the middle class, among whom are the most promising potential users: middle to large farmers.
• Pilot Biogas Systems must be located strategically to be easily accessible. The more these pilot plants have a 'real life character', i.e. be an operational part of a farm, the more convincing they will be for other farmers.
• Visits in Agricultural Schools and Colleges does not reach the decision makers of today, but lays the ground for biogas acceptance in the future.

Program goals

Since the actual installation of a biogas plant is ultimately the decision of the individual investor, it is important that the program goals and the organizational environment is conducive to affirmative individual decisions. The prerequisites for this must be established at all planning stages by and for all sectors concerned. A biogas program which is part of a larger development program must harmonize with the other departments of the parent program. The introduction of biogas as an alternative source of energy affects various sectors, each of which functions within its own specific structural setting. These, of course, vary from one country to another. As a rule, the responsibilities within a biogas program should be distributed along the lines of existing contacts with the corresponding target groups. If, for example, certain farmers are considered the target group of an information campaign, it would be appropriate to have the ministry of agriculture be involved in the biogas program.

Administration

No new administrative bodies should be established for performing the above tasks. Instead, it is advisable to set up biogas promotion units or biogas contact persons within the existing departments and agencies. Within the framework of a well-established development program, particular importance should be attached to self-help groups, voluntary agencies and/or private foundations.

The authorities' efforts in favor of biogas promotion will be more effective, if sufficient detailed information is placed in the hands of the self-help groups. The concerned administrative bodies must disseminate the requisite information and provide inexperienced groups with a satisfactory explanation of how to best exploit the promotional options available to them. Practical assistance should be offered wherever possible. Active self-help groups will then become ideal multipliers.