The Road to Mbulu

Somewhere, deep into the interior of Africa. Some 300 km from Arusha and miles from nowhere. The OIT and Solar Hope reconnaissance mission is advancing at an incredibly slow pace on the road truly less travelled and in the land forgotten by the rest of the world...

We are trying to survey some potential sites for our summer of solar installations and we received reports of a village in need of a water pumping system. Before we ventured on this journey to Mbulu we made every attempt to get an estimate of how long it would take us and what condition is the road. Even while we were getting this information from several sources we had a feeling that something was wrong. The estimates of time needed to get to Mbulu varied from 3 – 7 hours, depending who we talked to. Looking at the map, we confidently decided that the lower estimate was correct and that we would need probably no more than 3 hours. And the first part of the journey assured us of that estimate as we quickly advanced some 200 km through less and less populated area and entered the unknown land with the sense of strange emptiness and uneasy feeling. The road turned from beat-up tarmac to gravel and gradually to simply ground. Soon we were advancing at a speed of no more than 5 miles per hour, in a 4-wheel drive mode.  It was clear that we would be the only car on the road that afternoon. As that uneasy feeling was turning into serious concern, I started to understand what the biggest challenge for delivering aid and specifically solar electricity to Africa is – the roads. All roads in the interior of Tanzania (and most likely the rest of Africa) are very challenging and the one we were on could probably qualify as one of the most difficult. As we were turning on one of the 100 corners or serpentines, we were enjoying one of the most beautiful sceneries amid sheer fear of not making the curve and tumbling down the mountain. Growing up in former Yugoslavia and being part Montenegrin, I was fairly used to treacherous mountainous roads and driving on the edge of a cliff. But, the road to Mbulu was something else – it was an adventure in exploration and perseverance. It took us 7 hours as suggested by some estimates, but when we reached Mbulu, we found a peaceful and somehow idyllic town, in a valley surrounded by mountains. The time seemed to stand still there, the people isolated from the rest of the world were living their lives quietly and happily. Some, we were told, never venture out of Mbulu because of the treacherous roads. Those who do travel “out” use exclusively Land Cruisers, the only kind of vehicle that successfully navigates these roads. On the way back, we chose an alternate, but equally difficult road out. We ended up crossing a river with no bridge, pivoting several times at 60 degree vertical angle on a hump, and praying that our brakes would last.  

 We came from Mbulu with a pair of beautiful eyes and the sense of awe for this incredible land, isolated from the world. We knew that we would not come back there to do solar installations because of the ruggedness of the terrain and the risk of driving, but we had the sense of satisfaction for being privileged to see this land. Most importantly, we came to realization that the biggest challenges for delivering solar electricity to Africa are the roads.