Foster adoption and productive use of electricity – A cluster randomized policy roll-out in rural Rwanda

Last registered on July 23, 2023
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Foster adoption and productive use of electricity – A cluster randomized policy roll-out in rural Rwanda
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0008304
Initial registration date
September 30, 2021

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
October 04, 2021, 2:56 PM EDT

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

Last updated
July 23, 2023, 12:22 PM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country
Rwanda
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Lise Masselus
Affiliation
RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Nathan Fiala
PI Affiliation
University of Connecticut and RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research
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PI Name
Anicet Munyehirwe
PI Affiliation
IB&C
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PI Name
Jörg Peters
PI Affiliation
RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research and University of Passau
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PI Name
Maximiliane Sievert
PI Affiliation
RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research
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PI Name
Nina Kupzig
PI Affiliation
Ruhr-University Bochum
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Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2022-05-27
End date
2023-12-31
Keywords
Environment & Energy, Firms & Productivity
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
Despite a significant rollout of the electric grid, electricity usage among household and micro-enterprises in rural Rwanda remains low. This project seeks to answer if the benefits of on-grid electrification can be maximized by the availability of complementary inputs. Specifically, we study how one-time grants for micro-enterprises can stimulate appliance investments, electricity consumption, and business creation and performance. We partner with the Rwandan Ministry of Infrastructure to randomly assign the Business Development Services on the village level. We will look at the direct impact on grant applicants and communities by comparing outcomes between communities with and without access to grants after approximately one year. We will also assess spillovers on non-beneficiary households and microenterprises.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Fiala, Nathan et al. 2023. "Foster adoption and productive use of electricity – A cluster randomized policy roll-out in rural Rwanda." AEA RCT Registry. July 23. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.8304-3.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
To tackle liquidity constraints and encourage electricity consumption, the Rwandan government is piloting the Scaling-Up Energy Access Project (SEAP), which supports connected communities to use electricity for productive economic activities by, among other, providing tailored one-time in-kind grants to connected households and microenterprises.
Intervention Start Date
2022-07-04
Intervention End Date
2023-08-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Appliance ownership (intermediary), electricity consumption, firm profitability and employment
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The research design relies on a clustered randomized controlled trial with treatment assignment at the community level.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Public lottery
Randomization Unit
Center (cluster of umudugudu's)
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
84 centers
Sample size: planned number of observations
360 applicants
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
30 treatment centers, 54 control centers
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
UCONN Institutional Review Board
IRB Approval Date
2021-03-21
IRB Approval Number
H20-0104
Analysis Plan

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Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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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