ANALYSIS OF ENERGY POVERTY IN RAFI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF NIGER STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Energy access is an essential tool for social and economic development of any nation. The energy that most people in developed countries enjoy is usually out of the reach of most people in the developing countries, especially Nigeria. Energy access in Nigeria has urban and rural dimension; the situation is even worse in rural areas than the urban centres. This study, therefore, examines energy access (EA) and its determinant in Rafi LGA of Niger State. The objective of the study is as follows; to assess resident access to electricity and clean cooking energy, measure energy poverty and assess the determinant of energy poverty. Energy access was measured using a multi-tier approach to energy access measurement developed by Nicolina Angelou for Energy Sector Management Assistant Programme (ESMAP, 2014). Energy access in Rafi LGA was examined in ten (10) selected communities, one from each of the ten (10) wards of the LGA. Households, enterprise, and community institution forms the three (3) tiers of the community energy access levels, using graduated measurement rather than binary measurement. A total of 447 copies of questionnaires was administered. The data collected are analysed by using descriptive and inferential statistics. Regression analysis was employed as an analytical tool to identify the determinants of energy poverty in the study area. The study shows that electricity access from the three (3) tiers of the communities varies; households energy access index is (0.53), Enterprise (0.31), community institution (0.23), while the energy poverty for Rafi LGA stands at (0.29). The poor performance of energy access is occasioned by poor access to clean cooking fuel (0.05) at household level. The regression analysis shows that 65.4% of energy access in Rafi LGA can be explained by years spent in school, age of marriage, age of household head, household size and the income of the household head. The study concludes that access to clean cooking fuel is by far the most pressing challenge to energy access in rural communities of Rafi LGA. Therefore, the study recommends that clean and affordable cooking fuel should be made available across the study area with proper awareness creation on the benefits of using clean cooking fuel. If energy access at the rural areas must be tackled, education and livelihood of the people must also be improved.