Electricity usage in micro-enterprises — Evidence from Lake Victoria, Uganda

Neelsen, Sven; Peters, Jörg

doi:10.1016/j.esd.2010.11.003

Cited by 72 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Exceptions are the studies by Peters et al (2009) and Neelsen and Peters (2011). In addition, there is little empirical work concerned with the role of electricity for the performance of informal MSEs in urban settings.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 89%

“…Motta and Reiche (2001) also emphasize the importance of complementary services like telecommunication and transport in conjunction with electrification for the development of small firms in off-grid areas in Nicaragua. Evidence from rural Southern Uganda, provided by Neelsen and Peters (2011), suggests that electrification alters the sectoral composition of economic activities. On the basis of firm-level data from 200 micro enterprises, they do not find a significant effect of electrification on firm profits or worker remuneration.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 97%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Electricity Access and the Performance of Micro and Small Enterprises: Evidence from West Africa

2013

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Although it is widely accepted that electricity access is important for enterprise performance, the empirical evidence on the subject is mixed. In addition, evidence is scarce for micro and small enterprises operating in the informal sector. On the basis of a representative sample of informal firms in seven West African cities, we do not find evidence of a systematic, significant contribution of electricity access to enterprise performance. However, concentrating on a more homogeneous sample of tailors in Ouagadougou, we find that electricity can potentially exert a positive influence on performance, with electricity contributing to the uptake of modern machinery and business operation. Our findings are another illustration of the heterogeneity of the informal sector, which needs to be taken into account when policy interventions intend to overcome the growth constraints of firms operating in this segment of the economy.S'il est largement reconnu que l'accès à l'électricité joue un rôle important dans la performance des entreprises, les données empiriques sur la question sont mitigées. Qui plus est, peu d'informations sont disponibles concernant les petites et micro-entreprises opérant dans le secteur informel. Nous constatons, à partir d'un échantillon représentatif d'entreprises informelles de sept villes d'Afrique occidentale, qu'il n'existe aucune donnée démontrant un effet positif systématique et significatif de l'accès à l'électricité sur la performance des entreprises. Cependant, en examinant de près un échantillon plus homogène de tailleurs travaillant à Ouagadougou, nous observons un effet positif de l'électricité, l'accès à cette dernière favorisant l'adoption de machines modernes et contribuant au fonctionnement des entreprises. Nos résultats offrent une nouvelle illustration de l'hétérogénéité du secteur informel, qui doit être prise en compte lors de l'élaboration de politiques publiques destinées à aider les entreprises opérant dans ce segment de l'économie à surmonter les obstacles à la croissance.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 89%

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 97%

Electricity Access and the Performance of Micro and Small Enterprises: Evidence from West Africa

2013

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“…One of the ways of doing this effectively is to aid sustainability of rural businesses. The state, through the Ministry of Finance, further provides support through capacity-building for micro-financing (Neelsen & Peters, 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Challenges Inhibiting the Transformation of Subsistence Farming into Thriving Agri-business in Rural Uganda

Miruka¹,

Kabegambire²

2015

Ghana J. Dev. Stud.

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“…In the absence of roads and market access, electricity can only be used for productive purposes that serve the local market. Profitability of these businesses is mostly low and so is accordingly the business demand for electricity (Chaplin et al 2017;Neelsen and Peters 2011;Peters et al 2011;Peters and Sievert 2016;Lenz et al 2017). In addition, income often fluctuates seasonally since in many parts of the developing world the incomes of rural populations depend heavily on agricultural production.…”

Section: Commercially Operated Mini Gridsmentioning

confidence: 99%