The impact of power outages on households in Zambia
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12989152 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Imaduddin Ahmed (0000-0001-8115-7859, University College London, corresponding author), Prashant Parikh (0000-0002-1086-4190, University College London), Parfait Munezero (0000-0002-3902-3846, Statistics Sweden), Graham Sianjase, D’maris Coffman (0000-0003-3792-4744, University College London) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 40 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 835-867 |
| Publication date | 2023-09-02 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Economia Politica (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1973-820X • E-ISSN: 1120-2890 |
| Publisher | Springer Science+Business Media (PUBLISHER • DE) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s40888-023-00311-0 |
| OpenAlex | W4386391184 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 50 |
As global average temperatures rise, so does the frequency and intensity of El Niño-induced droughts, which in turn threaten the reliability of hydropower. 1.4 billion people live in countries where hydropower constitutes more than a quarter of the electricity production and which have experienced El Niño droughts, meaning many more power outages can be expected around the world. Little research has been conducted on the impact of power outages on mental health. This study takes Zambia as its case study to examine the impact that El Niño droughts have had on the lives of householders connected to a highly hydropower-dependant electricity grid, and includes the impact it has had on their physical and self-reported mental health. Using 54 online responses to a survey, we found that the greatest impacts of outages spoiled food, compromised entertainment, compromised ability to work and limitation in cooking options. More than a fifth of respondents reported experiencing self-reported depression to a major degree or all of the time due to power outages, with individuals writing their own responses that they felt debilitated, experienced reduced communication and reduced activities, and stress. Using Bayesian inference, we found that changes in sleeping patterns arising from power outages was a statistically significant predictor of self-reported depression. 63% of surveyed households were willing to pay approximately USD 0.10/kWh as of the end of 2019, about double the tariff that they did, to ensure reliable electricity supply. Household income was a statistically significant predictor of willingness to pay more
Agricultural economics · Business · Demographic economics · Depression (economics · Economic growth · Economics · Electricity · Geography · Hydropower · Mains electricity · Mental health · Power (physics · Productivity · Psychiatry · Quarter (Canadian coin · Socioeconomics · Tariff · Work (physics · Agricultural risk and resilience · Energy and Environment Impacts · Energy, Environment, and Transportation Policies · Engineering · Psychology
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| Citations per year | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |