 Why Are People Energy Poor? Evidence From Ethnic FractionalizationEnergy Economics, 2021, vol. 102, issue C Abstract: This article evaluates the impact of ethnic fractionalization on different indicators of energy poverty in Nepal. The empirical approach in this study exploits a plausibly exogenous variation in historical migration shocks to instrument for ethnic fractionalization. Regression results show that ethnic fractionalization leads to an increase in energy poverty among Nepalese households. In particular, energy poverty induced by ethnic fractionalization is severe among low-caste individuals, suggesting prospects of energy injustice in a caste-based hierarchical society. Among different channels, income appears to mediate the effect of ethnic fractionalization on energy poverty in the context of Nepal. A back-of-the-envelope calculation suggests that a significant drop in energy poverty from a change in income induced by ethnic fractionalization results in a national economic gain of approximately $3.2 million. Results indicate that policies aimed at enhancing local income can be effective in eradicating energy poverty in a developing country setting. Keywords: Energy expenditure; Fuel poverty; Ethnic diversity; Caste; Income; Nepal (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:102:y:2021:i:c:s0140988321003996 DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2021.105519 Access Statistics for this article Energy Economics is currently edited by R. S. J. Tol, Beng Ang, Lance Bachmeier, Perry Sadorsky, Ugur Soytas and J. P. Weyant More articles in Energy Economics from Elsevier |
Is your work missing from RePEc? Here is how to contribute.
Questions or problems? Check the EconPapers FAQ or send mail to .
EconPapers is hosted by the
School of Business at Örebro University.