Cost-effectiveness of energy-efficient biomass stoves in rural Senegal
Marc Jeuland's co-authored article is published in Energy Economics.
Research co-authored by Marc Jeuland, professor in the Sanford School of Public Policy and affiliate of the Duke Center for International Development, examines if energy-efficient biomass cookstoves (EEBCs) could be a viable option for providing access to clean cooking in rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa, a region which has made limited progress towards the cooking energy-related dimensions of Sustainable Development Goal 7.
In "A bridge to clean cooking? The cost-effectiveness of energy-efficient biomass stoves in rural Senegal," Jeuland and co-authors Gunther Bensch, Luciane Lenz and Ousmane Ndiaye examine the impacts of two differentiated types of EEBCs, comparing a low-cost locally produced stove designed to achieve fuel savings with a more advanced, but more expensive, imported stove that is expected to also substantially reduce health-harming emissions. They implemented a randomized controlled trial in rural Senegal, where challenges related to inefficient cooking are severe.
"We find that the two EEBCs perform similarly: both reduce fuel consumption but have no significant impact on cooking time and fuel collection, emissions, or objective health measures," the authors write. "We conclude that the technically advanced option is not cost effective for most of our sample, while the low-cost EEBC can be seen as a stop-gap solution that primarily reduces fuel use. The findings underpin the importance of customizing EEBC dissemination to local context and baseline cooking patterns."
The article is published in Volume 140 of Energy Economics, the premier field journal for energy economics and energy finance.