Editor’s choice
This policy brief describes an analysis of how power, interests, and politics play out within the structural aspects of a technological innovation system.
The skyline at dusk: a telegraph pole in front of the vibrant ombre of the sky.
Extending grid electricity to remote rural communities is expensive and has low demand density, leading to slow rates of rural grid electrification. Off-grid solutions – mini-grid, standalone, and distributed systems – are hence favoured for these regions. Mini-grids are community-scale electrical distribution networks, operating autonomously from the grid. They can provide low-cost electricity far from the grid. Even so, due to the high infrastructural and equipment cost, the set tariffs are often several times higher than grid electricity tariffs, raising questions of fairness and justice in electricity access.
Tariff injustice is exacerbated by the political economy factors surrounding mini-grid development. Adopting the definition of Atteridge and Weitz, political economy broadly focuses on how resource allocation and development outcomes are shaped by the distribution of power, material, and ideational factors that influence the behaviour of various actors. Power manifests in many forms including security, money, and stakeholder influence. Electricity access is a political issue and often overlaps with the vested interest of individuals seeking to make money and increase local influence, fame, and prestige. Mini-grid development and deployment is thus a socio-technical phenomenon.
Initiative / The Gridless Solutions Initiative explores alternative technologies for the delivery of critical services like energy, sanitation and freshwater.
Media coverage / Forskning visar att det finns allt fler småskaliga alternativ som snabbt blir både billigare och effektivare, skriver Barquet och Xylia i Dagens Industri.
Journal article / This study explores how a feminist political ecology approach can unpack the power differentials that shape climate and migration interactions.
Feature / SEI researchers are supporting Ugandan government officials in tackling the pressing issue of short-lived climate pollutants.
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