Fuel scarcity or household wealth? Assessing the drivers of cooking energy consumption patterns in rural areas in East Africa
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Date
2022
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Forests, Trees and Livelihoods
Abstract
Rural households in Tanzania and Mozambique depend mainly on
charcoal, firewood and other traditional fuels, such as cow dung or
agriculture by-products, to cook. Simultaneously, fuel scarcity is an
important phenomenon that leads households to apply coping strategies such as reducing the number of meals or increasing walking
distance to collect firewood. Despite the well-known negative health,
economic and potential ecologic impacts, the transition away from
solid biomass energy sources is not expected in the short run. Thus,
understanding the patterns of biomass energy consumption is essential to allow sustainable development in the household cooking sector.
In this study, we evaluated the influence of wealth status and fuelwood scarcity on household energy choices in four villages with case
study sites in Mozambique and Tanzania. The fuel usage patterns are
consistent with the ‘energy stacking’ model as, despite an increase in
the consumption of charcoal, firewood remains the principal cooking
fuel. Wealth does not necessarily result in a transition toward cleaner
fuels, nor does scarcity result in the use of other forms of traditional
bioenergy. We suggest the promotion of fuel reduction strategies such
as improved cookstoves or the implementation of on-farm trees to
reduce the pressure on forests.
Description
Journal Article
Keywords
Energy transition, Clean cooking, Biomass-dependent households, Mozambique, Tanzania
Citation
https://doi.org/10.1080/14728028.2022.2153282