Does Renewable Energy Spur Economic Growth in Kenya? An Empirical Investigation

Abstract

In this paper, the dynamic impact of renewable energy consumption on economic growth in Kenya has been empirically examined during the period from 1990 to 2019, using the autoregressive distributed lag-bounds testing approach. The study was motivated by the call to increase renewable energy use in Kenya. Contrary to expectations, the results of the study show that renewable energy consumption has no significant impact on economic growth in Kenya, regardless of whether the analysis is in the long or short run. The study, thus, concludes that the development of the real sector in Kenya is not dependent on the exploration of renewable energy. This implies that Kenya can still pursue the necessary energy conservations policies without compromising its long-term growth trajectory.