Restoring Balance :Bangladesh's Rural Energy Realities

Asaduzzaman, Mohammad ; Barnes, Douglas F. ; Khandker, Shahidur R.

World Bank

关键词: ACCESS TO ELECTRICITY;    ACCESS TO ENERGY;    ACCESS TO GRID;    ACCESS TO GRID ELECTRICITY;    ACCESS TO MODERN ENERGY;   

DOI  :  10.1596/978-0-8213-7897-7
RP-ID  :  53877

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Bangladesh is one of the world'spoorest countries. Nearly 80 percent of the nation's140 million people reside in rural areas; of these, 20percent live in extreme poverty. Geographically, manylow-lying areas are vulnerable to severe flooding, whileother regions are prone to drought, erosion, and soilsalinity. Such an unfavorable agricultural landscape,combined with mismanagement of natural resources andincreasing population pressure, is pushing many of the ruralpoor to the brink. Because Bangladesh is such a poorcountry, it also is one of the world's lowest energyproducers. Total annual energy supply is only about 150liters of oil equivalent per capita (International EnergyAgency, or IEA 2003); in rural areas, conditions are evenworse. Compared to other developing countries, Bangladeshuses little modern energy. Despite its successful ruralelectrification program, close to two-thirds of householdsremain without electricity and, with the exception ofkerosene, commercial fuels are beyond reach for many.Moreover, biomass fuels are becoming increasingly scarce.Collected mainly from the local environment as recently astwo decades ago, bio-fuels are fast becoming a marketedcommodity as access to local biomass continues to shrink.This study, the first to concentrate on Bangladesh'senergy systems and their effects on the lives of ruralpeople, drew on these background studies, as well as otherWorld Bank-financed research on indoor air pollution (IAP)and rural infrastructure, to present a rural energy strategyfor the country. Much of this study's analyticalunderpinning was based on several background studies. Thisstudy also reanalyzed data from earlier research to betterunderstand the benefits of modern energy use for ruralhouseholds, farm activities, and small businesses.