MEASURING THE HAPPINESS, MATERIAL WELL-BEING AND LIGHTING IMPACTS OF SOLAR HOME SYSTEMS IN TANZANIA: A RANDOMIZED CONTROL DESIGN

Abstract

Throughout the world, nearly 1.3 billion people lack access to electricity. In order to fill this gap, a number of companies have entered the solar residential market in Africa to provide rural and poor households with a means of accessing lighting and mobile-charging services. Off-Grid Electric (OGE), a Tanzania-based company which uses a third-party ownership model, is rapidly spreading in rural areas throughout the country. Despite the success of OGE and similar organizations, few if any rigorous studies have been done to evaluate the effects of energy access on outcomes such as health, education, income and welfare, which many solar companies, NGOs and multi-lateral institutions identify as the impact of their work. Using OGE as a case study, this project presents a full plan for a randomized control trial (RCT) to measure the impact of solar services on happiness, material well-being and lighting consumption on rural households in Tanzania.