Browsing by Subject "energy access"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Climate Finance for Just Transitions: Building Low-Carbon Development Pathways in an Age of US-China Rivalry
    (2022-09-14) Phillips, Jonathan; Ewing, Jackson; Rao, Abhay; Teji, Liilnna; Plutshack, Victoria; Jeuland, Marc
    This paper investigates challenges throughout the international climate finance landscape and recommends pathways for how investments into low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) can more effectively drive low-carbon development. The paper focuses on three issue areas: (1) aligning national climate strategies and international finance, (2) finding avenues for positive climate finance outcomes in an era of growing rivalry between Chinese and Group of Seven—particularly US—public financiers, and (3) reforming major climate finance practices and institutions to more effectively cater to the needs of LMIC stakeholders. This paper is part of a series of work under the New Frontiers in Climate Finance project, led by the James E. Rogers Energy Access Project, which is scoping the challenges and opportunities inherent to climate finance in LMICs, and seeking to help increase the scale and transformational impact of climate finance to these economies. The project aims to mobilize key stakeholder organizations around a common vision for aligning the tools of development finance with the needs and strategies of LMICs, and to build low-carbon development pathways that support poverty alleviation while reducing the next global wave of greenhouse gas emissions.
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    Improving Rural Livelihoods, Energy Access, and Resilience Where It’s Needed Most: The Case for Solar Mini-Grid Irrigation in Ethiopia
    (2022-07-18) Ingram, Matthew; Phillips, Jonathan; Dufera, Hizkyas; Hizikias, Liuel; Jeuland, Marc; Lovedale, James
    Ethiopia’s levels of agricultural productivity and energy access are among the lowest in the world. Now Ethiopia is moving forward with the new Distributed Renewable Energy-Agriculture Modalities (DREAM) project to test distributed solar mini-grids as a solution for improving irrigation, increasing agricultural productivity and farmer incomes, expanding rural electricity access, and enhancing gender and social inclusion. DREAM—the largest project in the world of its kind—aims to achieve these outcomes while also demonstrating an approach that can mobilize private investment to deliver scale. This policy brief summarizes the approach, along with findings of an economic viability analysis examining how the solar mini-grid irrigation projects are likely to impact farmers' incomes at nine unique sites in rural Ethiopia. A full evaluation will be conducted over the next three years to understand the broader impacts of the intervention on the resilience of farm enterprises and households. It will further impart lessons for the scale-up of DREAM in Ethiopia as well as similar programs elsewhere in Africa.
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    Sustainable Energy & Technology (Global Energy Access Network Case Studies)
    Valerino, Michael; Kumar, Chinmoy; Hunter, Brandon; Klug, Thomas
    This is the second volume of energy access case studies compiled by the Global Energy Access Network. The idea to assemble these case studies was conceived during our inaugural year (2016-17), when we noticed that many student members had latent experiences and insights to share from encountering energy access issues in their fieldwork--even those not directly working on energy access projects. This second volume highlights two key points of opportunity for addressing current energy access challenges: modern energy technologies and effective energy policy. The case study by Valerino discusses how the energy yield of photovoltaic cells can be compromised by poor air quality and what this could mean for countries like India that have intentions to increase reliance on solar energy but also suffer from high levels of air pollution. Kumar reflects on how lessons from India can help other developing nations finance renewable energy projects in innovative ways. Klug's case study examines how reliance on traditional biomass fuel has affected a community in Madagascar, and Hunter presents the importance of propagating suitable technologies that are robust and cater to the unique social and cultural needs of diverse communities by highlighting his own experiences on implementing biogas-fueled sanitation systems in the Philippines. By composing a distinct case study compilation that highlights quantitative results and also delves into qualitative takeaways, we hope that this volume is shared broadly so others can benefit from our collective experiences.
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    Taxes and Subsidies and the Transition to Clean Cooking: A Review of Relevant Theoretical and Empirical Insights
    (2022-11-22) Das, Ipsita; Jeuland, Marc; Plutshack, Victoria; Zong, Jiahui
    United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7.1 sets a target of ensuring universal access to affordable, reliable, and modern energy services by 2030. Unfortunately, many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are well off course to meet this target, especially with respect to access to clean cooking energy. Though many challenges impede progress, cost barriers are perhaps most significant. This report discusses the role of subsidy and tax policies—levied on both the supply and demand side of this market—in affecting progress toward universal access to clean cooking in LMICs. Moreover, we also combat a common myth among those opposing subsidies for clean cooking: we show that a “fear of spoiling the market” with such incentives finds little empirical support in the literature. This report offers recommendations to policy makers, in addition to a case study on clean cooking transitions in Nepal.
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    The True Cost of Solar Tariffs in East Africa
    (2019-02-05) Fetter, Rob; Phillips, Jonathan
    Over a billion people around the world continue to lack access to basic electricity, many of them unlikely to be connected to the grid for years or decades. Pay-as-you-go solar home systems (SHS)—kits that consumers can frequently purchase on credit that include a small solar panel, battery, light bulbs and wires, phone charging equipment, and sometimes televisions and other appliances—have quickly become a viable, private sector-driven solution that empowers consumers to take control of their energy future. Many low- and middle-income governments look to import duties and value-added taxes (VAT) to fund critical government services and the bulk of SHS equipment is produced in China. As sales of systems have grown, the question of how these systems should be treated under border taxation regimes has become a prominent issue. To better understand the trade-offs at stake, actual sales data for 700,000 units of solar home systems was collected from Uganda and Kenya, countries with vibrant SHS markets and where the border tariff debate looms large. The data was analyzed to measure the price sensitivity of consumers of two different SHS product lines in order to better understand the impact of tariffs on system sales as well as broader ramifications for households, electrification goals, and government revenue. More about this project can be found on the Energy Access Project site.