Recent empirical studies have provided inconclusive evidence on the impact energy has on well-being and the mechanisms involved. Quasi-experimental techniques in the form of an innovative instrumental variable (IV) strategy is applied to cross-sectional data for rural households in Uganda. This empirical study advances the literature’s understanding of energy poverty beyond singular dimensions, by performing a Factor Analysis to quantitatively characterize different types of energy deprivations an individual may experience. More specifically, energy poverty scores for each individual are generated to better illustrate the complementary input mechanisms and analyze how compounding energy deprivations affect different measures of education. The developed framework provides a more robust tool for estimation through the precision of the estimated coefficients and smaller standard errors, along with the ability of the multidimensional energy poverty index to estimate significant results that access to electricity is unable to. There are other important energy mechanisms beyond access to electricity that must be considered within an individual’s set of energy capabilities, and this may explain the literature’s insignificant or inconsistent findings.

Speaker’s bio:
Jeff is a third-year PhD candidate at the University of Barcelona – School of Economics, with research areas focusing on development economics, environmental / resource economics and public policy analysis.
Additionally, Jeff works as an Ethical and Project Evaluation Consultant for Health Media Labs, which focuses on social & behavioral research in public health, HIV/AIDS, children, education, refugee & migration, economics, WASH, agriculture, and M&E.