One good, two locations: the effects of cash and in-kind transfers on residential and commercial electricity use by firm-households in central Ghana

Last registered on July 08, 2024
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
One good, two locations: the effects of cash and in-kind transfers on residential and commercial electricity use by firm-households in central Ghana
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0013943
Initial registration date
July 06, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
July 08, 2024, 1:55 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
Ghana
Region
Bono East

Primary Investigator

Name
Flavio Malagutti
Affiliation
UCSB
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Sulemana Abubakari
PI Affiliation
Kintampo Health Research Center
Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2023-09-01
End date
2024-12-31
Keywords
Environment & Energy, Firms & Productivity
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
D13, H31, L94, O13, Q41, Q48
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
In this study, we explore the dual role of micro-entrepreneurs in central Ghana, who simultaneously act as firm owners and household decision-makers. We focus on "firm-households," a ubiquitous economic agent in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), which internalizes both profit and utility maximization processes. We present a classical demand test with a randomized controlled trial: half of our study participants are assigned to receive cash transfers, and the other half are assigned to an equivalent and infra-marginal in-kind commercial electricity transfers. We observe their electricity consumption before, during, and after the intervention and analyze the impact of these different transfers differentiating between residential and commercial use. Our findings highlight how these transfers influence firm-households' allocation of electricity across home and business settings. We present evidence on whether firm-households internalize positive wealth shocks differently based on the transfer medium and whether they substitute consumption across locations. The study offers insights into the separation of utility and profit maximization problems by microentrepreneurs and informs policy on energy usage and transfer mechanisms in LMICs.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Abubakari, Sulemana and Flavio Malagutti. 2024. "One good, two locations: the effects of cash and in-kind transfers on residential and commercial electricity use by firm-households in central Ghana." AEA RCT Registry. July 08. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.13943-1.0
Sponsors & Partners

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2023-09-01
Intervention End Date
2024-11-01

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Commercial and residential electricity consumption
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Experimental groups. We randomly assign participants with equal probability to two experimental groups. One group receives lump-sum, in-kind electricity transfers on their commercial meter (the treatment, in-kind, or electricity group). Electricity transfers are paid directly to a third-party electricity vendor on behalf of the participant. The other group receives lump-sum cash transfers (the control or cash group). Cash transfers are paid via mobile money. All participants receive four payments. The first payment is on the first Tuesday after they agree to participate in the program. The three subsequent payments are timed 30 days after each other. After all four payments are completed, participants exit the program.

Redeeming the transfer. Those in the cash group receive the payments in their phones via mobile money and are able to use it instanteneously. For those in the electricity group, we pay their preferred third-party electricity vendor on their behalf. Our payment sits with the vendor until the participant goes redeem it. So for participants to consume our electricity payments, they need to visit their vendor and go through the regular motions of a purchase. This way, the third-party vendor is able to print a receipt and log our electricity payment into NEDCo’s system. Participants thus go through the exact same process to redeem our benefit as they would for any regular electricity purchase.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization done in office by a computer
Randomization Unit
Individual firm-household
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
0
Sample size: planned number of observations
750 firm households
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
375 firm households
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
University of California, Santa Barbara, Office of Research
IRB Approval Date
2022-04-11
IRB Approval Number
14-22-0557
IRB Name
Kintampo Health Research Center, Institutional Ethics Committee
IRB Approval Date
2022-09-16
IRB Approval Number
KHRCIEC/2022-18
Analysis Plan

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials