How to choose a camera for long-term field work?

Aloha,

I am joining the peace corps in a few months and really want a good camera to document the experience.

However, as I am a camera-newby, I'm having a hard time deciding what to get.

I will have very limited access to electricity, so battery-type is a major consideration--lithium or AA? I may have a solar charger to mitigate this, but that is not always a guarantee of charging capabilities.

Also, theft is serious possibility, so I don't want to spend too much ($200-350 probably).

I am interested in lighter weight and/or good zoom, but I know that may be asking a lot from an inexpensive camera, so I'm not being too picky there.

The ones I noted so far are: Canon Powershot sx500, Nikon Coolpix L830, and Fujifilm Finepix s8200 (or another in that series).

Any opinions would be super helpful! Or if anyone has any feedback on what qualifications I should prioritize in my search (CCD or CMOS--whatever those are, etc.), I would really appreciate it!

Thanks so much!