Spatial dimensions of energy poverty alleviation and socioeconomic sustainability in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

Despite sub-Saharan Africa's vast endowment of energy resources, more than half of the region's population remains without ac-cess to electricity, positioning energy poverty as a persistent constraint on sustainable socioeconomic development. Consequently,a growing body of empirical literature has examined the socioeconomic consequences of energy poverty; however, its spatialtransmission mechanisms remain insufficiently explored. Therefore, this study investigates the spatial spillover effects of energypoverty on key socioeconomic outcomes, with particular emphasis on health, education, and labor market performance. Theanalysis employs three spatial panel regressions: the spatial Durbin model, the spatial autoregressive model, and the spatial errormodel, using data from 25 sub-Saharan African countries over the period 2000–2021. The results reveal that the spillover effectsof energy poverty are more pronounced than the direct effects. The spatial Durbin model results indicate that the total effectof a one-unit reduction in urban energy poverty is associated with an increase of 0.17 units in life expectancy and a decrease of0.79 units in infant mortality rates. Furthermore, energy poverty is found to be a significant impediment to educational attain-ment and labor market development. These findings underscore the importance of accounting for geographical proximity andthe equitable distribution of energy infrastructure when designing policies aimed at alleviating energy poverty in sub-SaharanAfrica.