Access to electricity for every South African citizen, including rural dwellers, is a human right issue guaranteed by the government’s laws and policies. However, many remote rural areas still suffer from a lack of this very important amenity, due to the expensive prospect of connecting them to the central national grid. The feasible approach to connecting the rural communities to electricity supply is suggestively through the use of microgrid solutions. The microgrid technology is a very recent and viable option for the energy revolution. Microgrids result from the incorporation of energy storage systems, distributed generators, and localized loads. The application of this technology requires deliberate and extensive work on the operational architecture and the policy framework to be adopted. The energy storage devices form an integral part of the microgrid configuration or architecture to make sure more maintainable and constant operation is attained. This paper presents a review of the architectures of the existing microgrid systems, as well as the policy framework for implementable solutions. The various architectures display the peculiarity of the systems based on the increased grid performance, stability, quality of electricity, and other comparative advantages. The microgrid architectures are fundamentally recognized according to their AC, DC, or hybrid distribution buses and the complexity inherent to them. In the Policy And Development Section, the problems are treated as ‘a search for the truth’—a truth being revealed by close and objective examination. The core of the problem to be solved is revealed clearly, thereby giving the basis for simplifying and solving it. The policies encourage the accomplishment of a zero-carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions, energy security attainment, the meeting of the electricity demand, and, lastly, the promotion of access to electricity in rural areas. It is established that the returns through charges of the consumers are very insignificant. Although returns on investment always come in conflict with the human right demands of the local indigenes, the policy framework would be explicit on the mode of returns for the government, private partners, and the communities—a return that can be short, medium, or long term. Policymakers would be keen on the exhaustive analysis of issues, leading to optimal decision making.

Many nations and their people rely on agriculture for gross domestic product and food security. Globally, 2.4 billion tons of grains are produced per annum. Efficient monitoring and control of the environmental factors affecting quality of granaries is therefore important to both farmers and governments. This study designs and develops a distributed low‐power, low‐cost but effective wireless monitoring system for storing bulk grains. Furthermore, a mini storage facility for grains is also designed and constructed according to standard considerations for a pilot test. The study deployed the developed wireless monitoring system with efficient coverage in the constructed mini bin and monitored the environmental factors affecting the quality of the stored grains over a time period. The entire system was then evaluated. From the obtained results, the developed system achieved optimal trade‐offs among coverage efficiency, reduced power consumption, reduced cost, real‐time monitoring, and longer node life. The system is appropriate for small and medium scale farmers and marketers. Practical applications The major application of the developed system resides in modular storage facilities for small scale farmers and middle level marketers of grains. The shortage or inaccessibility of small scale farmers and marketers of grains to resourceful storage bins has been eliminated. Furthermore, the system can possibly be deployed in existing large volume granary storage systems provided by governments in cities and major towns, for effective monitoring purpose. In most developing countries, many of the storage units provided by the governments for bulk grains are poorly managed. The relevance of this study is justified in its contribution to the provision of information on the selection of comparatively resourceful components for wireless monitoring systems. The network system analyses various components, topologies, and technologies based on specific criteria in order to identify the ones with comparative advantages. In summary, the developed wireless sensor network system helps to ensure food security and good economic returns of quality grains through well‐monitored, controlled, and affordable storage facilities.

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