Access to electrical energy and development of rural areas in Burkina Faso : analysis and assessment of the impact of access to electricity on the living conditions of households.

Thème : Accès à l’énergie électrique et développement des zones rurales au Burkina Faso: analyse et évaluation d’impact de l’accès à l’électricité sur les conditions de vie des ménages. L’électricité est largement reconnue pour améliorer la qualité de vie des personnes, faciliter la création d’emplois, ou encore permettre l’augmentation des gains de productivité dans les activités économiques. Au Burkina Faso, l’accès à cette « ressource » reste encore aujourd’hui un privilège, voire un luxe dont ne profite qu’une faible proportion de la population. Environ 21,44 % du territoire national est électrifié, avec une très forte disparité entre les zones urbaines et les zones rurales (68,69 % contre 3,27 %). Afin d’inverser la tendance, le gouvernement burkinabè a entrepris de multiples réformes de son secteur énergétique et l’opérationnalisation de grands projets d’électrification. L’État burkinabè ambitionne d’atteindre un double objectif : généraliser l’accès à l’électricité à toute sa population et instaurer une véritable dynamique dans le processus de développement et de réduction de la pauvreté. Aujourd’hui, il apparaît clairement que les objectifs poursuivis sont loin d’être atteints. En effet, les programmes et projets d’électrification qui, de prime abord s’inscrivent dans une perspective de développement et de réduction de la pauvreté, portent essentiellement sur les aspects techniques et financiers des systèmes de production, de transport et de distribution de l’énergie électrique. Ils tentent de proposer aux populations différents types de solutions d’accès physique à l’électricité, mais ne s’intéressent que très peu à la manière dont l’électricité fournie va contribuer véritablement à l’amélioration des conditions socio-économiques des populations concernées. Or, tenir compte de la finalité de l’électricité dans le quotidien des ménages ruraux est fondamental pour assurer des politiques de développement local plus efficaces.Summarize Electricity is widely acknowledged for enhancing the quality of life of people, for facilitating job creation, or even for allowing increased productivity gains in economic activities. In Burkina Faso, access to this "resource" is still a privilege and a luxury to a certain extent, enjoyed only by a small proportion of the population. About 21.44% of the national territory is electrified, with a marked disparity between the urban and rural areas (68.69% against 3.27%). To address and reverse this trend, the government of Burkina Faso has undertaken multiple reforms of its energy sector as well as the operationalization of major electrification projects. The state of Burkina Faso aims to achieve a double objective: to extend access to electricity to all its population and to establish a real dynamic in the process of development and reduction of poverty. At present, it has become clear that the objectives pursued are far from being achieved. Indeed, electrification programs and projects which, at first glance are inscribed in a development and poverty reduction perspective, mainly concern themselves with technical and financial aspects linked to the production, transport and distribution systems of electricity. Thus, they seek to offer different solutions for physical access to electricity for the population, but have little interest in the practical ways in which the electricity supplied will contribute to improve the socio-economic conditions of the target population. Yet, taking into account the purpose of electricity in the daily life of rural households is fundamental to ensuring more effective local development policies. This thesis address the latter perspective. This study seeks to clarify the complex relationships between energy and development based on surveys carried out in four newly electrified rural localities in Burkina Faso. In particular, it focuses on determining how electricity offers rural populations opportunities to improve their living conditions. Additionally, this study proposed poverty reduction strategies. This study is carried out as part of an impact assessment. Thus, our research uses the Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach to measure the effect of rural electrification on aspects of life most valued by the target population. To do so, we have used a two-step evaluation methodology, starting with a qualitative analysis followed by a quantitative analysis through the application of statistical and econometric techniques for data processing. The results of the qualitative assessment confirm that access to electricity offers different benefits to households. However, they also highlight the existence of a multitude of factors that may considerably hinder the achievement of these capabilities and therefore restrict local development opportunities. Using the propensity score matching method to empirically estimate the effect of rural electrification on various indicators such as household income and children's education, we came up with the same results. We are thereby demonstrating that access to electricity has a significant impact on the education of children. In contrast, when it comes to the impact on rural household income the results are mixed. We come to the conclusion that in order for rural electrification projects to have a significant impact on the life of households and on localities in general, onset consideration of the potential long-term changes sought is necessary. Therefore, complementary services must accompany rural electrification projects so that electricity could fulfil its role as a vector of economic and social development and poverty reduction