Village-level solar power in Africa: Accelerating access to electricity services through a socio-technical design in Kenya

Ulsrud, Kirsten; Winther, Tanja; Palit, Debajit; Rohracher, Harald

doi:10.1016/j.erss.2014.12.009

Cited by 104 publications

(61 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…On the other hand, recent studies have shown successful renewable energy adoption when a research team works directly with the local population to ensure their full participation in decision-making. For example, in this Special Issue, Ahlborg and Sjöstedt [41] conducted a case study on a hydropower in Tanzania and Ulsrud et al [42] on a solar project in Kenya.…”

Section: Socio-technical Systems In Energy Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mini-grids and renewable energy in rural Africa: How diffusion theory explains adoption of electricity in Uganda

Eder

Mutsaerts²,

Sriwannawit

2015

Energy Research & Social Science

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a b s t r a c tWith diffusion theory as the point of departure, this study analyses the factors that influence the adoption of renewable electricity from individual households' perspectives. The analysis is based on a case study provided by a Swedish energy service company operating in rural Uganda. The company distributes electricity to rural households via a mini-grid powered by a biomass gasification system. Three critical dimensions are identified to be crucial for adoption: technical, economic, and social. First, there is an emphasis on the relative advantages of the new technology. Second, there are economic requirements regarding a viable financial system for adopters, especially in such a low-income market. Third, the social dimension is critical, particularly the importance of foreign firms collaborating with local actors. We further suggest that a lack of understanding of local communities can lead foreign companies to fail in diffusion attempts. While we focus on Uganda, the results of our research are highly relevant for foreign actors who attempt to penetrate rural markets in developing countries in general.

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Section: Socio-technical Systems In Energy Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mini-grids and renewable energy in rural Africa: How diffusion theory explains adoption of electricity in Uganda

Eder

Mutsaerts²,

Sriwannawit

2015

Energy Research & Social Science

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“…To put the PPEO approach to work, the final step is to recognize that-at the level of individual energy systems and projects-the ability to deliver the energy services described by PPEO is a socio-technical problem (for an example of socio-technical design of energy systems, see [12], in this Special Issue). Too often, the issues of technology design and social design are viewed as independent from one another, but this is not the case [13,14].…”

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confidence: 99%

The social value of mid-scale energy in Africa: Redefining value and redesigning energy to reduce poverty

Miller

Altamirano-Allende

Johnson

et al. 2015

Energy Research & Social Science

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a b s t r a c tThis short communication suggests the need to attend carefully to the social value of energy in designing projects to reduce energy poverty. We define the social value of energy in terms of the total value derived by an individual or community from the use of energy, including economic and other forms of value, less any risks or burdens that accompany energy production, transmission, and consumption. This simple definition enables two significant assessments. First, the social value of energy projects can be compared to their costs, to evaluate whether projects are worth investing in, even if they may appear uneconomic in narrower terms. This is especially significant in contexts such as off-grid or renewable energy projects that may have higher energy costs. Second, the socio-technical design of energy projects can be evaluated to determine whether the project will deliver the kinds of energy services, via appropriate strategies, that enhance social value.

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“…Kenya has low rate of electrification (Ulsrud, Winther et al 2015). The electricity grid reaches 7% of the rural (Van der Hoeven 2013) and 50% of the urban (Oparanya 2009) population.…”

Section: Electricity In Kenyamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although Kenya is one of the world leaders on per capita installation of solar home systems, less than five per cent of rural households had such systems in 2009 (Hankins, Saini et al 2009;Byrne 2011). The use of solar photovoltaic (PV) technology has been developing and a few minigrids that supply electricity produced by micro hydropower and/or diesel generators have been established in rural areas (Ulsrud, Winther et al 2015). Kenya has a relatively well developed sector for solar home systems and government-led installation of solar PV systems at schools and health clinics, as well as various kinds of actors advocating increased use of solar PV through innovative models (Ulsrud, Winther et al 2015).…”

Section: Electricity In Kenyamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The sale of these smaller lighting systems increased by 200 per cent between 2010 to the middle of 2013 with about 700,000 solar lanterns sold to off-grid communities in rural Kenya, according to the Lighting Africa programme (Lighting Africa 2014). A survey conducted before electrification in a rural village in Kenya (Ulsrud, Winther et al 2015) revealed that households spent an average of 3.2 Euros per month on kerosene for house lighting. The same survey reported an average expenditure of about 1 Euro per month on telephone charging.…”

Section: Electricity In Kenyamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Combining malaria control with rural electrification : social and behavioural factors that influenced the design, use and sustainability of solar-powered mosquito trapping systems (SMoTS) for malaria elimination on Rusinga Island, western Kenya

Oria¹

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at 11 a.m. in the Aula. IntroductionThe research on which this thesis is based was carried out as part of a multidisciplinary project, "SolarMal", which aimed to evaluate proof of principle for the elimination of malaria from Rusinga Island by augmenting the existing national malaria control programme tools with mass trapping of mosquitoes. As electricity was required to run the mosquito traps and most residents had no electricity, solar systems were also installed, providing lighting and telephone charging as well. Although the main objective of the project was to control malaria and hence a public benefit, the solar-powered mosquito trapping systems (SMoTs) additionally provided a private benefit due to house electrification. Due to this uniqueness, while the theoretical basis of public health research has been based largely on behavioural psychology and biomedical science, this thesis included innovation and social dilemma theories to understand the complex interactions of mobilising diverse actors for social change. The SolarMal project had Entomology, Parasitology, Epidemiology and Health and Demographic Surveillance (HDSS), and Social Sciences components. The research towards this thesis was nested within the Social Studies component of which I was a member. Alongside outcome measures of malaria parasitaemia and entomological data, sociological studies investigated behavioural and contextual factors in the design and use of solar-powered mosquito trapping systems (SMoTS) and how to improve coverage, adherence and sustainability. Sociocultural issues in malaria controlStudies of malaria control have attributed failure of control programmes to limited understanding of social norms and a society's acceptance of intervention campaigns (Spielman 2003). Malaria control initiatives have recognised the important role human behaviour plays in this public health problem (Mwenesi, Harpham et al. 1995;Williams, Jones et al. 2002;Heggenhougen, Hackenthal et al. 2003). It is recognized that new preventive health interventions can only be considered effective if, in addition to efficacy and safety, they are socially acceptable and widely adhered to in the longer term (D'Alessandro, Olaleye et al. 1995;Alaii 2003;Gysels, Pell et al. 2009), and malariarelated social science research has resulted in improvements in the design and implementation of malaria prevention, management and control strategies (Mwenesi 2005). Notably, optimising the impact of existing programmes is arguably one of the most costeffective funding strategies that international agencies and national governments can take . As many technical interventions that prove efficacious in randomised trials are much less effective in the general population (Glasgow, Eakin et al. 1996;Sorensen, Emmons et al. 1998;Starfield 1998), there has been an increasing emphasis in global health to address the gap between the scientific efficacy of tools and strategies and their practical translation and impact into different local contexts (Bardosh 2014).Social science r...

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Village-level solar power in Africa: Accelerating access to electricity services through a socio-technical design in Kenya

Cited by 104 publications

References 23 publications

Mini-grids and renewable energy in rural Africa: How diffusion theory explains adoption of electricity in Uganda

Mini-grids and renewable energy in rural Africa: How diffusion theory explains adoption of electricity in Uganda

The social value of mid-scale energy in Africa: Redefining value and redesigning energy to reduce poverty

Combining malaria control with rural electrification : social and behavioural factors that influenced the design, use and sustainability of solar-powered mosquito trapping systems (SMoTS) for malaria elimination on Rusinga Island, western Kenya

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