Are rural energy access programs pro-poor interventions?

This perspective article discusses whether energy access programs in rural Sub-Saharan Africa reach the poor in a way that most policy actors claim. We examine on- and off-grid electrification as well as improved cooking. The success of pro-poor development is predicated on the programs targeting on the ultra-poor or enabling their intended poor recipients to unlock their productive potential. We therefore focus on which groups connect in typical access programs as well as on the triggered productive use potentials. Backed by the most recent literature, we argue that energy access interventions do not naturally deliver on poverty alleviation targets. If the pro-poor claims are to be met, programs need to improve their targeting. Especially for electrification, justifying investments with a rights-based argument and hence irrespective of whether they trigger broader economic development appears legitimate. This would nevertheless imply that care must be taken to also reach those too impoverished to afford improved energy access, requiring, for example, subsidization of connection costs.