Why Energy Access Matters in the Eastern Africa sub-Region?

It is not often that we ponder the simple question ‘why energy access,’ since energy has become mundane, and its service wide spread in many parts of the world, albeit millions still live without it. Beyond its basic services of lighting, and powering energy end uses, access to energy is redefining economic and social progress, facets of transformation that are increasingly depending on energy availability, affordability and reliability. Discovering pathways to deliver energy to millions more, enabling them access to clean energy services, quality social services and enhanced economic opportunities constitutes the energy revolution.

Energy access is an important dimension because the development and proper functioning of present day societies, including their social affairs, economic exchange, information sharing, provision of public services and overall quality of life depends on the availability and reliable supply of energy. Energy availability has become central to global, regional and local systems that its expansion and secure supply has long become a core goal of

10

States. The UN Rio+20 Outcome of Conference states that since 1992, insufficient progress in sustainable development was aggravated by the global energy crisis, particularly in developing countries, and urged countries to address challenges of access to sustainable modern energy services. The Conference further outlined that energy is crucial component to development, as access to modern energy contributes to poverty reduction, improvement of health, and provision of basic human needs, making “reliable, affordable, economically viable and socially and environmentally acceptable energy” crucial in developing countries.

Energy access is also an important consideration in envisioning socioeconomic transformation. Countries with lower levels of energy access and consumption have lower levels of economic development. The reasons for this observation can be many folds. At the micro-level, the productive use of energy is tied to economic empowerment and poverty alleviation. Access to energy helps stimulate the development of micro-enterprises, particularly in energy-poor regions in developing countries (Fakira, 1994; Foley 1990), contributing to the creation of employment opportunities and reduction of poverty. Even access to some electricity for productive use in off-grid communities can support seeding business development (Allerdice and Rogers, 2000). At the macro-level, energy is tied to development due to its direct input in production (Apergis and Payne, 2009) and indirectly complementing labor and capita inputs (Toman and Jemelkova, 2003). Therefore, at the aggregate level, energy consumption and economic growth are interlinked. Based on a study during the 1980-2005 period in the COMESA region, Nando, et al. (2010) concluded that the long-run relationship between energy and GDP in the region show strong relationship, and that they tend to move together.

Observation of economic development and energy consumption globally reveals similar evidence, leading to a similar conclusion. Comparison of GDP per capita and primary energy consumption per capita, shown in Fig. 8, shows a strong and direct relationship between energy and economic growth. This implies that economic growth requires access to increasing levels of energy. Therefore, access to energy can act as a constraint to economic growth and poverty alleviation (UNECA, 2004). As countries strive to accelerate socioeconomic transformation, and as growth takes hold in many parts of Eastern Africa, sustaining it with proper development and accessibility of affordable energy is quite important.

11

Figure 8: Energy Consumption and GDP per capita.

Energy accessibility is also crucial beyond economic growth considerations, to broader social development. At the micro-level, the existing heavy-reliance on biomass and limited transition to modern energy sources has social costs, including indoor pollution and the opportunity cost of retrieving firewood. Based on WHO data, the IEA estimates that globally, some 1.3 million lives are lost to health complications resulting from inhalation of smoke from biomass burning (see Fig. 9). This impact is largely a burden on women.

Figure 9: The health impact of traditional biomass use.

Source: IEA estimates based on WHO data.

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3

Malaria Smoke from biomass

Tuberclosis HIV-AIDS

Million death/year

12

Moreover, with declining forest resources, the cost of fetching firewood and other biomass has increased markedly, requiring more time being spent on wood energy collection that could otherwise have been spent on other productive uses. A study of this issue in Tanzania by Modi, et al. (2005) reveals that females spend around 250 hours in Tanzania, per person per year, in fetching water, and about 700 hours per person per year in collecting firewood. A study by Nanthuni and Findes (2003) further demonstrates the strong association between time spent on resource collection and a reduced likelihood of school attendance, particularly for girls.

Therefore, energy services have a significant role in social development and uplifting, as energy services that allow community-level deliverty of social services, in terms of health, education, potable water and agricultural extension, would position even the poorest to benefit from such services (the Energy and Resource Institute, 2007).

At the macro-level, countries’ human capital development, across health, education and other indicators is closely related with the level of energy consumption (see Figure 10).

Countries with lower levels of energy consumption demonstrate lower levels of human capital development.

Figure 10: Energy Consumption and human development index (HDI).

Since the provision of quality public services, such as health, education, clean water and others rely partly on the quality of accessible energy, poor development and provision of energy will hinder broader social capital development, and consequently economic transformation. In essence, energy input has become an ingredient, so to say, that enables economic development, and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (Modi et al. 2005, Nussbaumer, et al 2011).