Energy Consumption, Carbon Emission, and Well-Being in Africa

Abstract

The link among energy use, human welfare, and carbon emission has been a topical issue in the literature. In Africa, energy consumption has been on the increase owing to the production and consumption of sophisticated consumer goods and home appliances. Increased energy use triggers carbon emission that is detrimental to human welfare. This study investigates this puzzle in emerging African countries by utilizing panel vector autoregressive and system generalized method of moments (SYS-GMM) in the context of a mix of theories. The results indicate a unidirectional causality running from FUEL, COAL to per capita income (PCI). A unidirectional causality running from mortality rate (MOR) to COAL and CO2 was observed. There is a bidirectional relationship between MOR and energy use. The SYS-GMM results show that the effects of energy consumption on well-being are diverse. Increase in coal consumption reduces unemployment rate while electricity consumption reduces infant mortality rate. Fuel consumption aggravates incidence of mortality rate. CO2 reduces unemployment but worsens infant mortality rate. Electricity consumption reduces infant mortality rate. Hence, for the purpose of policy harmonization tailored toward improving well-being in the emerging economies of Africa, it is recommended that more of coal consumption and efficient use of electricity must be encouraged.