Design and Implementation of a Solar-Powered Street Lighting System for Rural Communities in Kebbi State

This project designs and implements a solar-powered street lighting system tailored for rural communities in Kebbi State, North West Nigeria, where grid electricity penetration remains critically low. Inadequate street lighting in rural areas contributes to road accidents, insecurity, and reduced economic activity after sunset. The system employs monocrystalline photovoltaic panels, a pulse-width modulation charge controller, a sealed lead-acid battery bank, and LED luminaires selected for their low power consumption and long operational lifespan. An automatic light-dependent resistor circuit controls ON/OFF switching based on ambient light intensity, eliminating manual intervention. The design was sized to deliver eight hours of lighting per night based on the average peak sun hours recorded in Kebbi State. A prototype was fabricated and tested over a four-week period, demonstrating reliable operation with average battery state-of-charge maintained above 50 percent even during two consecutive overcast days. Energy yield analysis confirms that the system meets the load demand with a 20 percent design margin. Cost analysis shows that the capital cost is recoverable within four years relative to diesel generator alternatives currently used in the study community. The project demonstrates that off-grid solar lighting is technically viable and economically competitive for rural North West Nigerian communities. Recommendations include scaling the design to a microgrid architecture and integrating remote monitoring via a GSM module to enable fault detection without on-site inspection. Keywords: solar lighting, rural electrification, photovoltaic, LED luminaire, Kebbi State.