Energy, Poverty and Development

Energy systems of any country play a significant role in poverty alleviation and subsequent development if they are emphatically pro-poor. People in rural areas need an affordable access to cleaner forms of energy in agriculture, water, sanitation, transportation, food and fuel. Energy in developing countries has a social impact and is required for the basic living of lower-income (agriculture based) and middle-income categories of population. It is essential to sustain life because people need to cook, maintain basic health standards, need heat in cold weather and light to perform their basic day-to-day tasks.

Nobel laureate Amartya Sen relates the concept of freedom to development. Political, economic, social, transparencies and protective security are the instrumental freedoms he discusses appropriately. But do the poor in developing countries even understand the existence of these types of freedom or even know how to reach out to acquire them? The amount of time spent by young girls to collect fuel wood or get clean water from miles away leaves them with no time to enjoy the basic right to education even if it is provided for free by the state. On the other hand if clean forms of energy exist, the business community levies hefty charges on its access so that there is no political pressure to provide them to the poor. For instance heavy charges on initial electricity installation confine its supply only to the urban population who are more profitable high-income electricity consumers for the provider as compared to the poor. This leads to a vicious cycle unaffordable access leading to poverty and poverty not allowing access to energy thus hindering development.

Developing countries need continuous innovation and high volume production of low-cost energy and related instruments to make it possible for cleaner energy to reach the poor. This is significant to alleviate poverty and ensure economic and social growth. The Global Energy Assessment report of the IIASA rightly puts it -  “Improved low-cost cook stoves reduce the amount of fuel used, which translates into direct cash savings. They also reduce respiratory health problems associated with smoke emission from traditional biomass stoves offer a better home and working environment. Other benefits include the alleviation of the burden placed on women and children in fuel collection, freeing up more time for women to engage in other activities, especially income generating endeavors.”

Measuring energy poverty across different states within a developing nation should also be made a part of the freedoms concept Sen has presented. Rural areas of some states may have access to cleaner energy that makes them developed states as compared to others within the same country (e.g. Kerala in India). Lessons in the areas of energy from such states may be learnt and replicated to others for a faster access leading to economic development of the country as a whole. Question may be - how to measure energy poverty effectively to resolve the problems created by it?