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In this study, the impact of access to electricity on poverty reduction for Botswana is examined using the annual data from 1990 to 2021. The study was motivated by the need to establish if access to electricity could be a panacea on poverty reduction in Botswana. Given that the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals deadline is fast approaching, and Botswana being one of the signatories, is expected to end poverty in all its forms – Goal 1. Establishing the role that electrification plays in poverty alleviation, helps in refocusing Botswana’s poverty alleviation strategies on factors that have high impact on poverty. The main objective of this study, therefore, is to investigate the relationship between poverty alleviation and access to electricity in Botswana.

The study uses the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach to investigate the nature of the relations. Two poverty proxies were used in this study namely, household consumption expenditure and life expectancy.

The study found access to electricity to reduce poverty in the long run and in the short run, regardless of the poverty measure used. Thus, access to electricity plays an important role in poverty alleviation and Botswana is recommended to continue with the rural and urban electrification initiatives.

The study explores the impact of access to electricity on poverty reduction in Botswana, a departure from the current studies that examined the same relationship using energy consumption in general. This is on the back of increasing dependence of economic activities on electricity as a major source of energy.

The authors estimate the reduction of electricity poverty in Vietnam. The essential argument is that human development is about subjective feeling as much as technology and income.

The authors use a self-reported satisfaction indicator as complementary to objective indicators based on national household surveys from 2008 to 2018.

In 2010, the fraction of households with access to electricity was over 96%. However, over 24% declared their electricity use did not meet their needs. Since 2014, the satisfaction rate is around 97%, even if 25% of the households used less than 50 kWh/month. Today there is electricity for all in Vietnam, but electricity bills weigh more and more in the budget of households.

The subjective energy poverty measure allows better international statistics: unlike poverty or needs-based criteria, self-assessed satisfaction of needs compares across income levels and climates.

Inequalities in electricity use among Vietnamese households decreased during the 2008–2018 period, but are not greater than inequalities in income, contrary to the findings of Son and Yoon (2020).

Engineering and econometric objectivist approaches dominate the literature on sustainability monitoring. Out of 232 sustainable development goal (SDG) indicators, only two are subjective. Yet the findings show that subjective indicators tell a different part of the story. Access is not grid building, but the meaningful provision of electricity to satisfy the needs.

This study aims to investigate the impact of the 2013 privatization of Nigeria’s energy sector on the technical performance of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) and its workforce.

This study used a questionnaire-based approach, and 196 participants were randomly selected. Analytical tools included standard deviation, Spearman rank correlation and regression analysis.

Before privatization, the energy sector, managed by the power holding company of Nigeria, suffered from inefficiencies in fault detection, response and billing. However, privatization improved resource utilization, replaced outdated transformers and increased operational efficiency. However, in spite of these improvements, BEDC faces challenges, including unstable voltage generation and inadequate staff welfare. This study also highlighted a lack of experience among the trained workforce in emerging electricity technologies such as the smart grid.

This study’s focus on BEDC may limit its generalizability to other energy companies. It does not delve into energy sector privatization’s broader economic and policy implications.

The positive outcomes of privatization, such as improved resource utilization and infrastructure investment, emphasize the potential benefits of private ownership and management. However, voltage generation stability and staff welfare challenges call for targeted interventions. Recommendations include investing in voltage generation enhancement, smart grid infrastructure and implementing measures to enhance employee well-being through benefit plans.

Energy sector enhancements hold positive social implications, uplifting living standards and bolstering electricity access for households and businesses.

This study contributes unique insights into privatization’s effects on BEDC, offering perspectives on preprivatization challenges and advancements. Practical recommendations aid BEDC and policymakers in boosting electricity distribution firms’ performance within the privatization context.

This study aims to investigate the intricate relationships between a community energy system, water resources and biodiversity conservation, with a specific focus on augmenting community energy resilience in Bondo. The primary objective is to gain an in-depth understanding of how community members perceive and experience the challenges related to balancing the often-conflicting demands of energy, water and biodiversity conservation within this context.

The research uses a qualitative approach to unravel the multifaceted dynamics of community energy systems, water resources and biodiversity conservation in Bondo. Data were collected through focus groups and direct observations, enabling a nuanced exploration of community perspectives and lived experiences. The subsequent analysis of this qualitative data follows established thematic analysis procedures.

The study's findings shed light on the formidable barriers that impede rural communities in Malawi from accessing electricity effectively. Even in communities fortunate enough to have electricity connections, the lack of knowledge regarding productive electricity use results in community energy systems operating at significantly reduced load factors. Furthermore, the intricate challenge of managing a biodiversity hotspot persists, exacerbated by the densely populated peripheral communities' continued reliance on forest, land and water resources. These activities, in turn, contribute to ecosystem degradation.

In a context where government-led management of forest reserves and game reserves has not yielded the expected results due to a multitude of factors, there arises a compelling need for innovative approaches. One such innovation involves fostering partnerships between the government and experienced trusts as lead organisations, providing a fresh perspective on addressing the complex interplay between community energy systems, water resources and biodiversity conservation. This novel approach opens doors to explore alternative pathways for achieving the delicate balance between human energy needs and the preservation of vital ecosystems.

The purpose of this study is to examine whether the state of infrastructure development in Sub-Saharan Africa actually stimulates industrial sector productivity, using a panel data set of 17 countries spanning from 2003 to 2018.

The study used panel least square estimation technique to examine the relationship between the variables.

The result of the study indicates that the major factor that influences industrial sector productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa is their quantity and quality of telecommunication infrastructure. Analysis shows that the relatively low level of industrial sector productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa is largely due to their poor electricity and transport infrastructure and underutilization of water supply and sanitation infrastructure.

The government should partner with other developed countries of the world such as Germany, Japan, Sweden, Netherlands, Austria, Singapore, United States of America, United Kingdom, Switzerland and United Arab Emirates, which are the top ten countries in infrastructure ranking as currently released by the World Bank, to equally extend their quality infrastructure to their own country for enhanced industrialization.

The novelty of this research lies on the fact it is a cross-country study as against the few empirical studies that focused only on a single country. Also, the study made use of the four main indicators of infrastructure development in an economy, which are electricity infrastructure, transport infrastructure, telecommunication infrastructure and water supply and sanitation infrastructure, to examine its effect on industrial sector productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa.

An unreliable supply of grid electricity has a strong negative impact on industrial and commercial profitability as well as on household activities and government services that rely on electricity supply. This unreliable grid electricity could be a result of technical and security factors affecting the grid network. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effects of technical and security factors on the transmission and distribution of grid electricity in Uganda.

This study used the ordinary least squares (OLS) and autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) models to examine the effects of technical and security factors on grid electricity reliability in Uganda. The study draws upon secondary time series monthly data sourced from the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) government utility, which transmits electricity to both distributors and grid users. Additionally, data from Umeme Limited, the largest power distribution utility in Uganda, were incorporated into the analysis.

The findings revealed that technical faults, failed grid equipment, system overload and theft and vandalism affected grid electricity reliability in the transmission and distribution subsystems of the Ugandan power grid network. The effect was computed both in terms of frequency and duration of power outages. For instance, the number of power outages was 116 and 2,307 for transmission and distribution subsystems, respectively. In terms of duration, the power outages reported on average were 1,248 h and 5,826 h, respectively, for transmission and distribution subsystems.

This paper investigates the effects of technical and security factors on the transmission and distribution grid electricity reliability, specifically focusing on frequency and duration of power outages, in the Ugandan context. It combines both OLS and ARDL models for analysis and adopts the systems reliability theory in the area of grid electricity reliability research.

This research investigates how subsidy programs in Vietnam's residential electricity market affect consumers' well-being.

Two perspectives are employed: cash transfer and quantity-based subsidy. The effectiveness of cash transfer is measured in three ways: benefit incidence, beneficiary incidence and materiality. The quantity-based subsidy is established under the increasing block rate pricing, with the first two block rates being lower than the marginal cost. To improve the quantity-based subsidy, the research examines the consumer surplus under four proposals.

The results show that both types of subsidies are ineffective in supporting the poor.

In order to achieve a more equal distribution among households, the subsidy program should remove all subsidized blocks and reflect the full marginal cost. Changes should be made to the price structure regarding both marginal price and intervals.

To mitigate the impact of the quantity-based subsidy, the government should improve the cash transfer by reducing extortion and improving targeting efficiency, especially for poor households living in rented houses.

This paper is the first to discuss the welfare effect of the electricity subsidy in Vietnam. First, it comprehensively evaluates the cash transfer subsidy in Vietnam. Second, it suggests a modification in the residential electricity tariff.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the empirical cointegration, long-run and short-run dynamics as well as causal relationship between electricity consumption and real GDP in Bangladesh for the period of 1971‒2014.

Autoregressive Distributed lag (ARDL) “Bound Test” approach is employed for the investigation in this study.

Both short-run and long-run coefficients are providing strong evidence of having positive significant association between electricity consumption and GDP. Our long-run results remain robust to different measurements and estimators as well. The study reveals the unidirectional causal flow running from per capita electricity consumption to per capita real GDP in the short run. The study result also yields strong evidence of bidirectional causal relationship between per capita electricity consumption and per capita real GDP in the long run with feedback. It is suggested that both electricity generation and conservation policy will be effective for Bangladesh economy.

In prior studies, lack of causality between electricity consumption and GDP is due to the omitted variables. Combined effects of public spending and trade openness on GDP and electricity consumption are also considerable.

The study assesses the non-linear nexus between fixed broadband and economic growth. The study focuses on data from 33 African countries for the period 2010 to 2020.

The empirical evidence is based on unit root tests, panel smooth transition regression and the generalized method of moments.

The following findings are established in this study. (1) The proportion of the population with access to electricity above and below which the relationship between fixed broadband and economic growth changes in sign is about 60%. (2) Below this threshold, each 1% increase in fixed broadband subscriptions induces a decline in economic growth of about 2.58%. Above the threshold, economic growth would increase by 2.43% when fixed broadband subscriptions increase by 1%. Sensitivity analyses and generalized method of moments (GMM) estimation show that these results are robust.

Due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, which requires countries to take adequate measures to curb the spread of the pandemic, especially by means of virtual economic activities, any national policy aiming at improving the access of populations to high levels of fixed broadband services should be preceded by the implementation of an electrification program for at least 60% of the total population. Otherwise, providing a good quality internet connection for the benefit of the population would not produce the expected effects on economic growth and would, therefore, be counterproductive.

This study complements the extant literature by providing thresholds at which fixed broadband affects economic growth.

This paper aims to investigate the association between financial inclusion and sustainable development in a global context.

The study used two datasets, and employed the Pearson correlation analysis and granger causality test to examine the correlation and pairwise causality between financial inclusion and sustainable development.

High levels of financial inclusion (in terms of higher commercial bank branches per 100,000 adults) is significantly associated with higher electricity production from renewable sources, higher industry productivity, higher adult literacy rate and higher renewable electricity output. Also, higher financial inclusion is significantly associated with low combustible renewables and waste. There is a uni-directional granger causality between global interest in internet information about sustainable development and global interest in internet information about financial inclusion, particularly in the period after the global financial crisis but before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The correlation between financial inclusion and sustainable development depends on the indicators employed to measure financial inclusion and sustainable development. The results support global calls for greater financial inclusion and the speedy attainment of the sustainable development goals for the good of all people, the environment and for the planet.

This paper is the first study in the literature to analyze the link between financial inclusion and sustainable development using global data. This study contributes to the existing literature by investigating the association between financial inclusion and sustainable development in a global context.