Access to energy improves households’ food security and children’s nutrition

Does access to electricity improve households’ food security and children’s nutrition over time? We provide insights from the Electricity Access and Food Security Project in Ethiopia, based on the World Bank’s Socio-Economic Survey data.

KEY MESSAGES 

From the study, we found that: 

• Connection to grid electricity increased households’ calorie intake by 153 kcal per day in 2013-2014 and by 187 kcal in 2016. 
• Children in households with electricity are less likely to be stunted than those in households without electricity. 
• The overall results show that the convenience that electricity provides for cooking frequently and storing food is likely to be the reason for these findings. 
• Since grid electricity may take time to obtain and also may require substantial investment, off-grid high-power electric sources should be considered as a short-term intervention to achieve the desired results.