Effect of Subsidies on the Affordability, Adoption, and Usability of Renewable Cooking Energy Technologies in Selected Refugee
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53819/81018102t2561Abstract
Limited access to clean and sustainable cooking energy remains a critical challenge in refugee communities worldwide. This study examined how subsidy mechanisms influence the affordability, adoption, and usability of renewable cooking energy technologies in three Rwandan refugee camps. A cross-sectional survey was administered to 301 refugee households (response rate: 77.8%) selected through stratified and systematic random sampling from a target population of 11,647 families. Data were analysed using Pearson correlation and simple linear regression. Results indicate that subsidies have a statistically significant negative relationship with affordability (β = −.239; p = .000) and usability (β = −.149; p = .010), while the relationship with adoption was negative but not statistically significant (β = −.078; p = .175). These counterintuitive findings suggest that current subsidy structures face implementation inefficiencies including intermediary capture, limited fuel cost coverage, and inadequate post-adoption support that undermine their intended impact. The study concludes that subsidies in their current form provide limited relief across all three dimensions and recommends direct consumer-side instruments, fuel subsidy integration, mandatory user training, and flexible financing mechanisms to strengthen subsidy effectiveness in displacement settings.
Keywords: Adoption, Affordability, Renewable Cooking Energy, Refugee Camps, Subsidies, Usability
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