L’expérience du Recho Mirak : retour sur trois décennies de promotion des foyers améliorés en Haïti

• Main Author: Thomas Thivillon
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Institut Veolia Environnement 2013-12-01
• Series: Field Actions Science Reports
• Subjects: Cooking; Counterfeiting; Crafts; Energy; Haiti; Improved cooking stoves
• Online Access: http://journals.openedition.org/factsreports/2824

With the launch of the United Nations “Sustainable energy for all” initiative, “improved stoves” are enjoying a revival of interest from the international community. This paper seeks to contribute to the discussion, and to new energy access projects, by looking back over three highly instructive decades promoting improved stoves in Haiti. It analyzes the case of the Recho Mirak (Miracle Stove), a charcoal cooking stove developed in the early 1980s, distinguishing between the different components of the initiative: the technical innovation, the marketing strategy, and the production system. By comparing the results of three recent efficiency tests conducted on the stove with data from quantitative and qualitative user surveys carried out in 2012, and with archive material of Recho Mirak promotion projects (from the journal Synergies) and of available assessment reports, the author highlights what has been learnt from the experience, and the challenges that remain to be addressed in converting the majority of Haitian households to a more efficient way of cooking.