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Empowering Economic Growth: The Transformative Impact of Elеctricity Access in ECOWAS and ASEAN Member States

Received: 19 December 2023     Accepted: 6 January 2024     Published: 18 January 2024
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Abstract

Access to electricity is essential for a country’s economic development since it paves the way for the growth of many different industries, businesses, and households. This study underscores the potential relationship between economic growth and access to electricity by examining the significant differences in economic development metrics between the member states of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). From the 1960s to 2019, ECOWAS has lagged behind ASEAN regarding electricity access and economic growth, while ASEAN has experienced rapid and tremendous economic growth within the same period. By comparing their respective starting points in the 1960s, just after independence, to 2019, this study seeks to analyse the impact of electricity access on the economic development of the two regional blocs. The methodology employed in this study involves a literature review and analyses of secondary data from various sources. The study noted several challenges confronting ECOWAS in its pursuit to enhance access to electricity that could spur economic growth in the region. These challenges include, but are not limited to, poor infrastructure, affordability constraints, political instability, and high transmission and distribution losses. The findings provide valuable insights into the critical role of electricity access in spurring economic development and offer guidance on how ECOWAS can draw lessons from ASEAN’s experiences to drive economic growth through enhanced and efficient increase in electricity access rates across its member states.

Published in International Journal of Energy and Power Engineering (Volume 13, Issue 1)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11
Page(s) 1-13
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Electricity Access, Grid Reliability, System Losses, Rural Electrification, Regional Integration

References
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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Fiasorgbor, N. K., Abdulai, R. A. T. (2024). Empowering Economic Growth: The Transformative Impact of Elеctricity Access in ECOWAS and ASEAN Member States. International Journal of Energy and Power Engineering, 13(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11

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    ACS Style

    Fiasorgbor, N. K.; Abdulai, R. A. T. Empowering Economic Growth: The Transformative Impact of Elеctricity Access in ECOWAS and ASEAN Member States. Int. J. Energy Power Eng. 2024, 13(1), 1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11

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    AMA Style

    Fiasorgbor NK, Abdulai RAT. Empowering Economic Growth: The Transformative Impact of Elеctricity Access in ECOWAS and ASEAN Member States. Int J Energy Power Eng. 2024;13(1):1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11,
      author = {Nutifafa Kodzo Fiasorgbor and Robert Aziz Tia Abdulai},
      title = {Empowering Economic Growth: The Transformative Impact of Elеctricity Access in ECOWAS and ASEAN Member States},
      journal = {International Journal of Energy and Power Engineering},
      volume = {13},
      number = {1},
      pages = {1-13},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijepe.20241301.11},
      abstract = {Access to electricity is essential for a country’s economic development since it paves the way for the growth of many different industries, businesses, and households. This study underscores the potential relationship between economic growth and access to electricity by examining the significant differences in economic development metrics between the member states of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). From the 1960s to 2019, ECOWAS has lagged behind ASEAN regarding electricity access and economic growth, while ASEAN has experienced rapid and tremendous economic growth within the same period. By comparing their respective starting points in the 1960s, just after independence, to 2019, this study seeks to analyse the impact of electricity access on the economic development of the two regional blocs. The methodology employed in this study involves a literature review and analyses of secondary data from various sources. The study noted several challenges confronting ECOWAS in its pursuit to enhance access to electricity that could spur economic growth in the region. These challenges include, but are not limited to, poor infrastructure, affordability constraints, political instability, and high transmission and distribution losses. The findings provide valuable insights into the critical role of electricity access in spurring economic development and offer guidance on how ECOWAS can draw lessons from ASEAN’s experiences to drive economic growth through enhanced and efficient increase in electricity access rates across its member states.
    },
     year = {2024}
    }
    

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    AU  - Nutifafa Kodzo Fiasorgbor
    AU  - Robert Aziz Tia Abdulai
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    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11
    T2  - International Journal of Energy and Power Engineering
    JF  - International Journal of Energy and Power Engineering
    JO  - International Journal of Energy and Power Engineering
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    EP  - 13
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
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    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijepe.20241301.11
    AB  - Access to electricity is essential for a country’s economic development since it paves the way for the growth of many different industries, businesses, and households. This study underscores the potential relationship between economic growth and access to electricity by examining the significant differences in economic development metrics between the member states of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). From the 1960s to 2019, ECOWAS has lagged behind ASEAN regarding electricity access and economic growth, while ASEAN has experienced rapid and tremendous economic growth within the same period. By comparing their respective starting points in the 1960s, just after independence, to 2019, this study seeks to analyse the impact of electricity access on the economic development of the two regional blocs. The methodology employed in this study involves a literature review and analyses of secondary data from various sources. The study noted several challenges confronting ECOWAS in its pursuit to enhance access to electricity that could spur economic growth in the region. These challenges include, but are not limited to, poor infrastructure, affordability constraints, political instability, and high transmission and distribution losses. The findings provide valuable insights into the critical role of electricity access in spurring economic development and offer guidance on how ECOWAS can draw lessons from ASEAN’s experiences to drive economic growth through enhanced and efficient increase in electricity access rates across its member states.
    
    VL  - 13
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Author Information
  • Engineering and Development, ECOWAS Regional Electricity Regulatory Authority (ERERA), Accra, Ghana

  • Research and Corporate Affairs, Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), Accra, Ghana

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