Rural electricity for Consumers’ Socio-Economic Improvement in Kasulu and Uyui Districts, Tanzania

Abstract

EXTENDED ABSTRACT Electricity is one of the ingredients of development in rural areas. Through Rural Energy Agency and state energy utility, substantial efforts have been made to improve access to and leading to reduction of electricity poverty. With undeniable reality on improved access to electricity, the status of whether electricity supplied is of quality for socio-economic improvement was sluggish. Thus, the study was conducted in rural areas of Kasulu and Uyui District to (i) examine affordability of electricity, (ii) assess reliability of electricity (iii) determine the influence of electricity on the adoption of ICT and (iv) determine the influence of electricity on household income. The sample size was 374, probability technique was used to select respondents who filled the supplied questionnaire in quest of data collection. The results showed that 61.76% of the respondents in the lowest income quintile did not afford electricity connection because they spent up to 33% of annual income on connection cost; this was above an agreeable threshold of 10%. On consumption, electricity was affordable; respondents had spent no more than 5% of monthly income on electricity while consuming between 40-57 kWh per month above the basic need electricity of 30kWh. Moreover, using a scale, index measure and trend analysis, it was found that reliability of electricity was ensured because the system was available most of the time consumers wanted to use power. In Kasulu and Uyui Districts respondents had spent 6 and 15days without electricity in 2018 due to unplanned outages; confirming reliability. On ICT adoption, the poison regression results showed that electricity connection, age of household head, income and the need for information predicts ICT adoption in terms of gadgets. There was a shift of paradigm in mobile phone ownership from feature phone to smart phones which eased access to information about politics, weather and market for farm produce. Moreover, on household income, the PLS-SEM results showed that quality electricity (reliability, affordability and voltage stability) is far powerful in predicting household income by reducing cost on services like milling. It also stimulates small enterprises and improves job creation among the householders. While electricity remains a significant ingredient in attaining socio-economic development in rural areas, through EWURA, connection cost should be made on instalment to relieve customers from high connection costs. Moreover, TANESCO is argued to use SCADA on distribution lines to monitor outages incidences.