Appliance Ownership and Aspirations among Electric Grid and Home Solar Households in Rural Kenya

Kenneth Lee, Edward Miguel and Catherine Wolfram

American Economic Review, 2016, vol. 106, issue 5, 89-94

Abstract: In Sub-Saharan Africa, there are active debates about whether increases in energy access should be driven by investments in electric grid infrastructure or small-scale "home solar" systems (e.g., solar lanterns and solar home systems). We summarize the results of a household electrical appliance survey and describe how households in rural Kenya differ in terms of appliance ownership and aspirations. Our data suggest that home solar is not a substitute for grid power. Furthermore, the environmental advantages of home solar are likely to be relatively small in countries like Kenya, where grid power is primarily derived from non-fossil fuel sources.

JEL-codes: D12 L94 L98 O12 O13 Q42 Q48 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
Note: DOI: 10.1257/aer.p20161097
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (31)

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Working Paper: Appliance Ownership and Aspirations among Electric Grid and Home Solar Households in Rural Kenya (2016)
Working Paper: Appliance Ownership and Aspirations among Electric Grid and Home Solar Households in Rural Kenya (2016)
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