In an attempt to address the country's worsening electricity crisis and accelerate the shift to renewable energy, the government is reportedly drawing up a major programme to promote solar power. According to a report published in this daily, the government high-ups have asked the Finance Division to divert Tk 10 billion from a fund earmarked for microcredit and poverty alleviation programmes in the current budget and allocate it to installing rooftop solar systems. The move is in line with the government's commitment to meet 20 per cent, or 5,500MW, of total electricity demand from renewable sources by 2030. Currently, only 5.6 per cent of electricity comes from renewable sources and Bangladesh lags far behind its regional peers in solar power generation. With the energy crisis deepening, tapping the country's vast rooftop spaces could offer a timely way to expand clean power generation. However, questions remain over how significantly rooftop solar can increase overall power generation and, more importantly, to what extent it can help ease the energy crunch.

First of all, the massive government-funded solar power initiative comes at a time when most rooftop solar systems installed in Dhaka have reportedly gone dead due to poor maintenance and gaps in monitoring. Some high-rise buildings installed solar systems only to meet RAJUK's compliance requirements, but many of the units stopped functioning soon after installation. Installing solar panels is the easier part; the real challenge lies in ensuring that the systems are properly maintained and deliver throughout their lifespan. The concern is particularly relevant in Bangladesh, where public infrastructure projects are often treated as godsend opportunities to misappropriate funds, resulting in substandard project implementation, while subsequent neglect leaves the infrastructure to fall into despair long before the end of their intended lifespan. The government must therefore look into these issues carefully. Without proper planning, rooftop solar could turn into a massive misallocation of public funds and another white elephant project in the power sector. Instead, opening up the rooftop solar market to private investment could be a more viable approach. A public-private partnership, in which private companies install and maintain rooftop solar systems based on their own commercial interests, could ensure better maintenance and accountability. 

A senior Finance Ministry official has reportedly defended the decision to divert funds from development budget to rooftop solar systems, saying that the government has found no other viable short-term solution to the power crisis and that rooftop solar could help reduce the risk of electricity shortages next year. But the expected contribution of such systems should not be overstated. The proposed investment is aimed at installing rooftop solar panels, not developing utility-scale solar plants capable of supplying power on a much larger scale. Given the limited contribution of existing rooftop systems to the national grid, it remains questionable whether this approach can significantly reduce the country's electricity crisis. Exploring alternative energy sources, including renewables, as well as increasing domestic gas exploration and coal production, is necessary. But these are medium- to long-term solutions, while the current crisis demands immediate solution. In the short term, there appears to be no alternative to ensuring an uninterrupted supply of imported LNG.