Globally, 2.8 billion people cook with biomass fuels, resulting in devastating health and environmental consequences. Efforts to transition households to cooking with clean fuels are hampered by "fuel stacking", the reliance on multiple fuels and stoves. Consequently, there have been few interventions that have realised the full potential of clean cooking. Here we conduct a structured literature review (N=100) to identify drivers of fuel stacking and specify them according to a psychological model of behaviour, the Capability-Opportunity-Motivation (COM-B) model. We create a taxonomy of stacking and find that the Physical Opportunity domain accounted for 82% of drivers. Our results have important implications for intervention design as they suggest improving opportunity is the most effective pathway to adoption of cleaner fuels. The findings are used to derive recommendations about how policy makers and practitioners can proactively address drivers of stacking in order to foster adoption of clean cooking stoves and fuels.
Globally, rates of electrification and clean cooking are low, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Off-grid energy solutions have a vital role to play in accelerating clean energy access to address Sustainable Development Goal 7. For organisations aiming to provide both electricity and cooking services, there is a need for holistic studies on adoption determinants to aid market expansion. This paper presents a comprehensive literature review of the adoption determinants and barriers for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), solar home systems (SHS) and electric cooking (e-cooking) in Sub-Saharan Africa. A total of 40 adoption determinants were identified across the 71 publications examined. Of these, 30 determinants were shared by at least two of the technologies, whilst six were specifically linked to LPG and four to SHS. Key determinants that cut across technologies included reliability of alternative technologies (such as grid supply), reliable energy supply through the technology in question, affordability, household size and location (urban/rural). The findings show that there is an overlap in the demographics that use these technologies, as urban households often use SHS as a backup to the electricity grid and their cooking needs can feasibly be met by LPG or e-cooking devices. There is a clear opportunity for e-cooking devices to be sold as appliances for SHS. E-cooking devices such as electric pressure cookers can be complementary to LPG due to their suitability for cooking different foods. Pay-as-you-go models, which have a proven track record with improving access to SHS and are beginning to also be applied to LPG, have the potential to provide a strong foundation for scaling up of LPG and e-cooking services.
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