Reposts have released that Applied Materials Inc. (Santa Clara, California, U.S.) has made a program to provide access to solar photovoltaic (PV) and LED lighting systems for 1,000 households and ten schools in villages in India at the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting in New York City on September 21st, 2011 .

In the meanwhile , the program will expand access to household finance for home solar systems, as well as providing training for entrepreneurs from Africa and Central America to replicate the model in other regions.

According to Mark Walker of Applied Materials, "In India, according to the World Bank, approximately 400 million people are without access to reliable electricity and an estimated 100,000 villages are without access to the national grid and receive no electricity. In these cases, the use of coal, kerosene, and other 'dirty' fuel sources for power, cooking, and lighting provide energy with intermittent quality and reliability, as well as serious health and environmental concerns."

Applied Materials has partnered with NGO E+Co (Bloomfield, New Jersey, U.S.) and the Solar Electric Light Company (SELCO, Bangalore, India) for the initiative.

Applied Materials estimates that its program will positively impact 10,000 individuals. The company notes that the benefits will be particularly strong for children, as a lack of reliable light affects young students' ability to study effectively at night.