Determinants of Household Energy Use for Cooking in Tanzania

Abstract

This article examines the determinants of household energy use for cooking among households in the Tanzania mainland. The study  employed descriptive and inferential statistics to analyse data  from the 2017/18 Tanzania Household Budget Survey. Regarding the  primary source of energy used  for cooking, descriptive statistics revealed that the majority (66.5%) of households use firewood for  cooking, 24.6% use charcoal, while only 8.8% use other (non-biomass fuels). This indicates that the  majority (91.1%) rely on traditional  fuel (biomass) for cooking in Tanzania. Based on inferential  statistics, the chi-square test found that employment status, marital status,  education level, place of  residence, income, age, and household size were statistically significant predictors associated with  household  energy use for cooking in Tanzania at a 5 percent significant level. On the other hand,  multinomial logistic model results showed that  households with few members, younger heads, heads  with a higher level of education, and households located in urban areas were less  likely to use  firewood and charcoal as the primary fuel type for cooking than other types of energy such as  electricity, kerosene,  industrial gas, coal, generator, and solar. The researcher recommends using  these findings in formulating appropriate policies regarding  reducing or removing taxes on cooking  gas, appliances, spare parts, and subsidies on electricity connections to improve  access to affordable  modern energy and lessen the environmental and health impacts of biomass energy use.