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Electricity and female employment: Evidence from Tajikistan’s winter energy crisis

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  • Poignant, Adrian

Abstract

This paper studies the impact of electricity rationing on female employment during Tajikistan’s winter energy crisis, 2009–2015. Reduced access to electricity led to a decline in female employment as women left the workforce to become homemakers. The negative employment effect is specific to women and does not appear to be driven by changes in labor demand, involuntary unemployment, labor migration or fertility patterns. However, the decline in female employment is accompanied by a lower adoption of labor-saving electrical appliances. These findings suggest that electricity provision releases women from unpaid domestic work. Furthermore, they suggest that the quality of the electricity supply is vital for realizing the full benefits of electrification in developing countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Poignant, Adrian, 2025. "Electricity and female employment: Evidence from Tajikistan’s winter energy crisis," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:deveco:v:172:y:2025:i:c:s0304387824001329
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2024.103383
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Electricity; Female employment; Labor supply;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H41 - Public Economics - - Publicly Provided Goods - - - Public Goods
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • O53 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Asia including Middle East
    • Q40 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - General

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