Regulating Community Energy at the National Level Comparing Ethiopia, Malawi and Mozambique

Abstract

Abstract There is a generalised assumption that the development of energy policy and regulation leads to increased access to energy. This paper investigates the empirical evidence to support this assumption in Ethiopia, Malawi and Mozambique, providing a comparative assessment of the regulatory landscape of energy in the three countries and their current status in terms of advancing towards universal energy access for both electricity and fuels. Using comparatively available data, the analysis examined the impact of extensive and dispersed bodies of regulation on energy access, as well as the extent to which pioneering community energy enhances energy access. The results are examined in the light of the current context of energy provision in the three countries. The results suggest that universal access to electricity requires an extensive body of energy policy in general and regulation of community energy in particular. However, while being a pioneer in community energy is correlated with improvements in energy access, the factors that explain such a correlation are not clear. More research needs to advance the current understanding of how regulation interacts with other drivers of infrastructure development and innovation to understand what works in a sustainable transition to provide universal access to clean energy.