Access to Modern Energy: A Review of Impact Evaluations

Abstract

Universal access to modern energy services, in terms of access to electricity and to modern cooking facilities, has been recognized as fundamental challenge for development and is likely to be included in the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals. Despite a strong praise for action and several programs at both national and international level, very few impact evaluation studies try to shed light on the causal relationship between access to energy and development, by also allowing decision makers to rigorously assess cost-effectiveness and efficiency of policies and programs. This work attempts to review the literature on existing impact evaluation of access to electricity and modern cooking facilities. For access to electricity we consider as outcomes labour markets, time allocation, household welfare (consumption, income, schooling and health) and business. For access to improved cookstoves, we assess impacts on household welfare. The reviewed literature highlights a significant causal impact of electricity access on important metrics of wellbeing, but more mixed evidence regarding clean cookstove. Finally, we also review the barriers and drivers of access to modern energy services identified by most recent impact evaluation studies. JEL classification:

Connecting the sustainable development goals by their energy inter-linkages

“…. (2017);Bonan et al (2014);Burlig and Preonas (2016);Casillas and Kammen (2010);Cherian (2015); Cook (2011); Haines et al(2017);Kirubi et al (2009);Pachauri et al (2012);Pueyo et al (2013);Rao et al (2014); Schwerhoff and Sy Access to modern energy forms (electricity, clean cook-stoves, high-quality lighƟng) is fundamental to human development since the energy services made possible by them help alleviate chronic and persistent poverty. Modern energy access can also help to free up resources (e.g.…”

Sustainable Development, Poverty Eradication and Reducing Inequalities

“…Deployment of renewable energy and improvements in energy efficiency globally will aid climate change mitigation efforts, and this, in turn, can help to reduce the exposure of people to certain types of disasters and extreme events (McCollum et al, 2018). Rogelj et al, 2013;Cherian, 2015;Jingura andKamusoko, 2016 Jackson andSenker, 2011;Bonan et al, 2014;NCE, 2014;OECD, 2017;York and McGee, 2017;McCollum et al, 2018Fankhaeser et al, 2008McCollum et al, 2008;Guivarch et al, 2011;Bertram et al, 2015;Tully, 2006Riahi et al, 2012;Daut et al, 2013;IPCC, 2014;Hallegatte et al, 2016b;McCollum et al, 2018 Sustainable and Modern Energy Reducing global food supply chain losses have several important secondary benefits like conserving energy.…”

“…Kirubi et al, 2009;Casillas and Kammen, 2010; Cook, 2011;Pachauri et al, 2012; Pode, 2013; Pueyo et al, 2013; Zulu and Richardson, 2013;Bonan et al, 2014;Rao et al, 2014;Burlig and Preonas, 2016;McCollum et al, 2018Cabraal et al, 2005Tilman et al, 2009;van Vuuren et al, 2009;Asaduzzaman et al, 2010;Finco and Doppler, 2010;Msangi et al, 2010;Sola et al, 2016;McCollum et al, 2018Lam et al, 2012Lim et al, 2012;Aranda et al, 2014;McCollum et al, 2018Lipscomb et al, 2013 van de Walle et al, 2013;McCollum et al, 2018 No direct interactionCasillas and K...…”

Human well‐being and climate change mitigation

“…[82][83][84] However, most of these studies simply consider the environmental implications of consumption, without extending the analysis to well-being (although consumption can be considered synonymous with wellbeing from a neoclassical economic perspective, as discussed above, a more comprehensive approach encompassing multiple dimensions of well-being is better-suited to sustainability studies 85 ). A notable exception is the stream of work focused on minimum energy use and energy access in relation to poverty alleviation in India and South Asia, 64,[86][87][88][89][90][91] and Brazil. 75 Here it is argued that poverty alleviation requires not only a certain quantity of energy, but also that the type and quality of energy that is provisioned matters.…”