Diverse Dimensions of Energy Access: Insights from Three Essays on Energy Interventions in the Global South

Abstract

This dissertation examines how characteristics of electricity service beyond nominal access shape development outcomes in low- and middle-income countries. While global electrification efforts have substantially expanded connections, evidence on the welfare impacts of electricity remains mixed. This dissertation argues that these mixed findings reflect the multidimensional nature of electricity as a service and the fact that development impacts depend not only on whether electricity is available, but on how it is delivered, how much is delivered, how it is priced and measured, and how infrastructure is maintained over time.The first chapter studies decentralized solar technologies in rural Malawi, where grid electricity is largely unavailable. Using difference-in-differences estimation and latent class analysis, I show that solar device capacity and household patterns of use directly influence the benefits that households receive from solar ownership. These findings help explain why the rapid diffusion of decentralized solar technologies has not translated into widespread welfare gains and underscore the importance of capacity thresholds in defining meaningful electrification.The second chapter examines electricity sufficiency and reliability in health facilities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where electricity is critical for time-sensitive and life-saving services. Using longitudinal maximum likelihood estimation and two-way fixed effects models, this chapter finds that facilities with sufficient and reliable power experience significantly lower inpatient mortality on average and over time, as well as higher outpatient utilization and nurse staffing levels. These results highlight the central role of electricity in healthcare delivery and the importance of reliability and sufficiency beyond nominal access.The final chapter examines the impacts of a bundled electricity service upgrade in an already electrified urban setting, focusing on the rollout of smart meters combined with mandatory capacity (amperage) upgrades in the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal. Exploiting quasi-experimental variation in installation timing, the chapter shows that the upgrade leads to meaningful improvements in electricity reliability and increases in billed electricity consumption. Electricity bills rise more sharply than consumption alone would predict because capacity upgrades shift households into higher service charges and per-unit prices under Nepal’s tariff structure. Households respond dynamically to these changes, with adjustments in payment behavior and financial strain concentrated among lower-consuming households and those experiencing the largest price increases. The results illustrate how efforts to prepare electricity systems for higher utilization can unlock latent demand while reshaping affordability when service improvements interact with existing pricing structures.Taken together, the chapters demonstrate that the development impacts of electrification depend on which dimension of electricity service is binding in a given context and on how technologies interact with institutional features such as pricing, measurement, and enforcement. By moving beyond binary access metrics and documenting how different service characteristics matter across settings, this dissertation contributes to a more nuanced understanding of when and why electricity delivers meaningful welfare gains.