Dr Kwame Adjei-Mantey

In Ghana, there is an over-reliance on traditional energy sources such as firewood and charcoal for household cooking. This leads to heavy pollution, which affects the health and well-being of household members. It also has implications for climate change. Households that rely on traditional energy sources are considered energy poor.

The level of environmental awareness is relatively low, and as a result of poor socio-economic circumstances, households tend to place more emphasis on primary needs – food, clothing, shelter and healthcare – thus neglecting cleaner energy sources such as electricity and liquefied petroleum gas for cooking. This is especially prevalent if protecting the environment limits people’s ability to afford basic needs.

Dr Kwame Adjei-Mantey’s research project – titled ‘Environmental consciousness, energy poverty and social origin: An empirical analysis’ – seeks to gauge environmental consciousness, examine the relationship between energy poverty and environmental ecology, and explore the interactions between social sources and energy policy. The following questions will be asked: What is the ecological consciousness level in the energy decisions of a Ghanaian household? How does social origin influence access to and the adoption of cleaner energy?

About 1 000 households in multiple districts across Ghana will be interviewed to collect primary data. This will be followed by an analysis of the data, stakeholder visits and a workshop to discuss the results. Stakeholders that will be involved include policymakers from the Energy Commission; the National Petroleum Authority; the Environmental Protection Agency; the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation; the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development; the media; and academia, among others.

The study will make essential contributions that fill gaps in the literature. It will demonstrate the roles of social origin and environmental awareness in energy decisions. As an African who has witnessed first-hand the adverse effects of poverty, disease and inadequate access to modern infrastructure, the continent’s development means a lot, particularly in terms of sustainability.

Dr Kwame Adjei-Mantey holds a PhD in Economics from the Graduate School of Economics, Kobe University, Japan. He obtained an MPhil from the University of Ghana and a BA from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, also in Ghana. Dr Adjei-Mantey’s research interests broadly cover applied microeconomics and micro econometrics. Environmental economics, energy economics, the economics of development and behavioural economics are of particular interest to him. He teaches at the School of Sustainable Development, the University of Environment and Sustainable Development, Somanya, Ghana. He also has experience teaching microeconomic theory, public sector economics and statistics to economists. Dr Adjei-Mantey’s recently published articles can be found in the journals Energy Policy, Environment Development and Sustainability and Environment and Development Economics.