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Technical & Policy Research

Resources for academics, practitioners and policy makers

Resources for academics, practitioners and policy makers

  1. World Energy Outlook, Executive Summary, 2019, IEA
    • This 2019 paper explores possible negative and positive futures regarding energy system decisions, and what actions may bring these futures about. It addresses specific energy choices that will heavily impact Africa’s future, and how African energy consumers affect global energy trends. 
  2. Incorporating Ecohydrological Processes Into an Analysis of Charcoal Livestock Production Systems in the Tropics:  An Alternative Interpretation of the Water-Energy-Food Nexus, Mwampamba, Schaik, Hernandez, 2018
    • With beef production and the charcoal industry growing in Sub-Saharan Africa, this 2018 study seeks to understand the charcoal-grazing connection and its effects on hydrological processes. Exclusion of information on the intensity of biomass harvesting can over-attribute changes in hydrological processes to charcoal, exaggerating the effects on ecosystems and leading to over-intervention. 
  3. Scalable Business Models for Alternative Biomass Cooking Fuels and Their Potential for Sub-Saharan Africa, World Bank, 2017
    • This 2013 paper addresses how governments, donors, and investors may make targeted interventions to create more successful business models for alternative biomass cooking fuel companies in sub-Saharan Africa. 
  4. Energy Sector Management Assistance Program Technical Report 2015, Beyond Connections, Energy Access Redefined
    • This 2015 report covers the multi-agency effort to develop frameworks that follow the mandate suggested by the Global Tracking Framework report to measure energy access and determine where agency intervention is necessary in order to ensure more universal access to modern energy. 
  5. Charcoal Production and Strategies Enhance its Sustainability in Kenya, Development in Practice, Njenga, Munster, Iiyama, Neufeldt, Kithinji, & Jamnadass, 2013
    • This 2013 review article assesses the productivity status of Kenya’s charcoal industry, how it contributes to the livelihoods of those working in the industry, its environmental impact and suggestions as to how it can be reduced, and how stakeholders are involved.  
  6. Environmental Burden of Charcoal Production and Use in Dar es Salaam, TZ, 2011
    • This 2011 study finds that due to population increase in Tanzania, the country has increased deforestation causing degradation of soil quality and water sources, less rainfall, air pollution, and disruption of agricultural production. 
  7. Energy Access Among the Urban and Peri-Urban Poor in Kenya, Global Network on Energy for Sustainable Development, Karekezi, Kimani, Onguru, 2008
    • This 2008 study assesses the availability of modern energy sources to urban poor, cost of energy sources, and policies and subsidies promoting energy access to the urban poor. Kerosene was identified as the most common fuel source in Kibera, and urbanization has come with high levels of urban poverty.
  1. Urban Briquette Making Pilot Study, 2020
    • This study funded by the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN) collects data to inform and guide the development of the briquette sector in Kenya. The report covers raw materials, briquette making technology, supply chain analysis, assessment of policy and scenarios for scaling the briquette value chain. 
  2. Drivers of Deforestation In Tanzania, Leeds 2020
    • This policy brief from the University of Leeds (2020) pinpoints the drivers of deforestation in Tanzania, citing a 2010-2017 study  that reveals which human activities lead to the most deforestation and forest degradation. After this analysis, they propose changes for the agricultural sector. 
  3. The ‘war on charcoal’ and its paradoxes for Tanzania’s conservation and development, 2020
    • This 2020 article analyzes the current policy measures for charcoal production in the Miombo Woodlands, hitting on the simplified responses to the complex interplay between economic development and charcoal use. The paper argues for a holistic perspective on the sustainable management of Miombo and for the consideration of the livelihood of its residents.
  4. Charcoal Value Chains in Kenya, A 20-year Synthesis, Ndegwa, Iiyama, Sola, Okeyo, Njenga and Muriuki, 2020
    • This 2020 study reviews past literature to document and investigate the value chains from production to consumption of charcoal, to pinpoint where sustainable charcoal value chains may be developed. It found that charcoal value chains are important in Kenya, but have negative social, environment, and health environments surrounding them that must be overcome.
  5. The influence of energy policy on charcoal consumption in urban households in Tanzania, 2020
    • This 2020 paper discusses a case study from 1990-2018, that reveals how charcoal is the cheapest and most widely used fuel in urban households in Dar Es Salaam. This challenges Tanzania’s national energy policies that have focused on transitioning away from biomass, creating an argument for sustainable urban energy planning across a range of fuel types that balance economic, social and environmental outcomes. 
  6. Charcoal in Tanzania: the persistently popular cooking-fuel in need of a policy re-think, Leeds 2020
    • This policy brief from the University of Leeds (2020) uses surveys from households in Dar es Salaam (2018) to reveal the increasing demand for charcoal over the last 30 years. Despite national policy trying to shift away from charcoal use, the authors suggest an embrace of charcoal in national policy, the re-evaluation of the fuel-levy exemption and support for research and monitoring of charcoal.
  7. Agriculture is the main driver of deforestation in Tanzania, 2020
    •  This 2019 study reveals that crop cultivation (agriculture) is the top driver of deforestation in Tanzania, over livestock grazing, timber harvesting and charcoal. The authors discuss policy makers’ uneducated attempts to reduce deforestation by reducing demand for charcoal, suggesting a greater inter-sectoral coordination between agriculture, energy and forest sectors.
  8. Profit and Profit Distribution Along Ghana’s Charcoal Commodity Chain, Energy for Sustainable Development, Agyei, Hansen, Acheampong, 2018
    • This 2018 study uses commodity-chain analysis for Ghana’s charcoal commodity chain to find the characteristics of and profits reaped by actors in the chain. It found that profits are skewed towards merchants and away from retailers and producers, and that there are demographic employment and income inequalities that should be addressed by decreasing merchants’ pricing control. 
  9. AScHES Convening Report, 2018
    • This report on Advancing Sustainable Charcoal Enterprises at Scale (AScHES), a 5-day workshop in Naivasha, Kenya, hosted by The Charcoal Project and the MIT D-Lab, summarizes the focus of each daily session and discuss’ the overall impact they had on the 20 entrepreneurs.
  10. Branch and Martiniello, Geoforum Charcoal Power, Focus on Uganda, 2018
    • Through interviews, observation, and field work in northern Uganda, this 2018 study strives to find and address the political and historical complexities of charcoal and energy poverty in the region as a modern issue. 
  11. The Charcoal Transition: Greening the charcoal value chain to mitigate climate change and improve local livelihoods, 2017
    • This 2017 report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations assesses the potential contributions of a green charcoal value chain to climate-change mitigation and improved livelihoods with the aim of informing policy-makers and other stakeholders.
  12. National Charcoal Survey for Uganda – Addressing Barriers to Adoption of Improved Charcoal Production Technologies and Sustainable Land Management Practices Through an Integrated Approach.
    • Using a 2015 survey in the charcoal value chain, this paper shows the status of charcoal production, supply, and usage in Uganda, and pinpoints ways in which charcoal production and trade can be made more sustainable. 
  13. Enabling reforms: Analyzing the political economy of the charcoal sector in Tanzania, 2013
    • This 2013 article provides an analysis of the political economy of the charcoal sector in Tanzania. It documents political, social and economic explanations as to why a reform dialogue needs to be sensitive, and specifically suggests what these reforms should look like. 
  14. What Role will Charcoal Play in the Coming Decades? Insights from Up-to-Date Findings and Reviews, Energy for Sustainable Development, Ghilardi, Mwampamba, & Dutt, 2013
    • This 2013 paper reviews past studies to clarify the economic significance, social implications, and environmental issues in Sub-Saharan Africa’s charcoal industry. The main goal of this paper was to consolidate years of charcoal research in order to create more digestible information on the industry. 
  15. Analysis of the Charcoal Value Chain in Kenya, Ministry of Environment, Water and Natural Resources, 2013
    • This 2013 paper contains information on the scale and economic value of the charcoal industry in Kenya, and its driving forces and key players. Using the value-chain approach, interventions can be made to create jobs, help limit constraints for producers and actors in the charcoal industry, and efficiently implement sustainable practices. 
  16. Opportunities, Challenges and Way Forward for the Charcoal Briquette Industry in Sub-Saharan Africa, Energy for Sustainable Development, Mwampamba, Owen and Pigaht, 2013
    • This 2013 study analyzes the experiences of pioneer charcoal briquette producers in Sub-Saharan Africa. It found that widespread adoption of charcoal briquettes is unlikely to decrease demand for wood-fuel charcoal due to things such as low wood charcoal prices and legal and fiscal barriers to briquette production. The study provides recommendations to promote charcoal briquette adoption. 
  17. Dispelling Common Misconceptions to Improve Attitudes and Policy Outlook on Charcoal in Developing Countries, Energy for Sustainable Development, Mwampamba, Ghilardi, Sander and Chaix
    • This 2013 study seeks to address misconceptions surrounding charcoal and energy access so that its issues may be more efficiently addressed. It presents five common myths about charcoal that stakeholders perpetuate, and proposes reasons for these myths and the consequences they have on policy response regarding charcoal. 
  18. What role will charcoal play in the coming decades? Insights from up-to-date findings and reviews, 2013
    • This article from 2013 discusses charcoal production and its use for cooking in Sub-Saharan Africa, detailing  the role of charcoal in current discussions about energy security, environmental policy, and human and economic development.
  19. Environmental Crisis or Sustainable Development Opportunity?  Transforming the Charcoal Sector in Tanzania, The World Bank, 2009
    • This 2009 study addresses the issues of under-regulation in Tanzania’s charcoal industry, and proposes recommendations as to how accountability, sustainability, and equity in Tanzania’s charcoal supply chain can be enforced.
  1. Bamboo Energy Presentation –  Jan. 2020 Uganda Bamboo Association
    • In this paper from Hon. Flavia Munaaba Nabugere, Secretary General of the Uganda Bamboo Association (2020), Nabugere presents bamboo as a viable solution for the high energy demands of the people in Uganda. Within the text, Nabugere outlines the benefits of growing bamboo, the ease and cost of setting up a small bamboo plantation, and the type of bamboo that works best for producing charcoal. 
  2. Forests and Energy – Background Study Prepared for the 13th Session of the UN Forum on Forests
    • In a background study prepared for the thirteenth session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (2018), Gary Bull analyzes the progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 7, “Ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”. Within this report, Bull evaluates each theme and presents recommendations for each of the challenges and priorities for achieving SDG7 in South Africa.
  3. Integrating wood fuels into agriculture and food security agendas and research in sub-Saharan Africa, ICRAF & PennState Study
    • This study from ICRAF and PennState (2017) discusses the central role of wood fuels in Sub-Saharan Africa, arguing for policy makers, researchers and donors to address the sustainability and viability of these fuel types. The authors report on the research funding and energy priorities in the national budget, as well as strategies for sustainable wood fuel cooking and heating energy systems.
  4. Integrating wood fuels into agriculture and food security agendas and research in sub-Saharan Africa, ICRAF & PennState Study
    • This study from ICRAF and PennState (2017) discusses the central role of wood fuels in Sub-Saharan Africa, arguing for policy makers, researchers and donors to address the sustainability and viability of these fuel types. The authors report on the research funding and energy priorities in the national budget, as well as strategies for sustainable wood fuel cooking and heating energy systems.
  5. Bamboo for Green Development? The Opportunities and Challenges of Commercialising Bamboo in South Africa, 2017, Scheba, Blanchard, and Mayeki
    • This report from the Human Sciences Research Council (2017) promotes the use of bamboo as a lucrative renewable source, sharing the opportunities, challenges and impacts of growing commercial bamboo through findings that offer insight into the bamboo industry and experiences of commercial growers in South Africa.  
  6. Wood Energy in Sub-Saharan Africa: How to Make a Shadow Business Sustainable, German Development Institute
    • This article from the German Development Institute (2016) argues for the control of the wood energy sector to make the resource more reliable, storeable, renewable and sustainable. The author analyzes the wood energy value chains in sub-Saharan Africa and reveals their unsustainable practices and unsuccessful interventions, leading the author to present his own policy recommendations. 
  7. The potential of agroforestry in the provision of sustainable woodfuel in sub-Saharan Africa. ICRAF
    • This paper from ICRAF (2013) reviews the status of the woodfuel sector in sub-Saharan Africa, and estimates the impacts of increasing wood demand for charcoal production on tree cover. The authors advocate for the adoption of agroforestry, integrated with improved kilns and stoves, as a method of reducing wood harvest pressures in forests through sustainably supplied trees.
  8. The Business of Planting Trees, WRI & The Nature Conservancy
    • This report from the World Resources Institute and The Nature Conservancy argues for the environmental and economical benefits of planting trees. The authors provide 14 snapshots of companies that partake in restoration, highlighting four prominent approaches in the emerging restoration economy designed to help entrepreneurs and investors to jump on this growth opportunity. 
  9. Benefits of Bamboo Compared to Trees – Uganda Bamboo Association
    • The Uganda Bamboo Association shares the benefits of cultivating bamboo compared to other trees, highlighting bamboo’s high carbon sink, rapid regeneration rate, and biomass fuel capabilities that can spare up to 50,000 hardwood trees per year. 
  1. Africa – SDG Index and Dashboards Report 2018 – The Sustainable Development Goals Center for Africa
    • This report from The Sustainable Development Goals Center for Africa and Sustainable Development Solutions Network (2018) presents their annual global SDG Index and Dashboard report, which provides a measure of progress and a goal-level snapshot across all 17 SDGs. This report analyzes co-existing development agendas, an overview of the statistical capacity in Africa, an assessment of a selection of African countries implementation efforts, and individual country profiles.  
  2. The Uganda National Household Survey, 2016/2017, Uganda Bureau of Statistics
    • This slideshow presents the Uganda National Household Survey (2016/2017), a study designed to provide quality information for monitoring national and international development framework. The study analyzed population, labor force, housing, household and community characteristics, as well as poverty trends within rural and urban areas.
  3. Tanzania Human Development Report, 2017, Social Policy in the Context of Economic Transformation, United Republic of Tanzania
    • The Tanzania Human development report (2017) analyzes the status of human development, the drivers of human development outcomes, and the relationship between population dynamics, in order to present the progress of human development in Tanzania. The report also argues for the integration of economic and social policies, in order to achieve economic transformation within human development.   
  4. County Statistical Abstract, Nairobi City County, 2015, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics
    • The Nairobi City County Statistical Abstract (2015) provides statistical information on economic, demographic and social dimensions in Nairobi City County, including population, agriculture, forestry, livestock, energy and public health statistics, from 2013 and 2014. 
  5. Kenya State of the Cities Baseline Survey, World Bank Group, 2014
    • In 2014 the world bank conducted a baseline study of the demographic, infrastructure, and economic profile of fifteen Kenya municipalities, asking key policy questions that reveal city-specific conditions in order to identify policy interest and provide a comparison of population and infrastructure characteristics in Kenyan cities. 
  6. Uganda National Population and Housing Census 2014 
    • This report presents demographic and socio-economic data from the Uganda National population and Housing Census in 2014. Specifically on the population size, distribution, dynamics, trends and characteristics, as well as household characteristics and housing conditions. 
  1. HFI Kenya Webinar Series:
  2. TCP’s COVID-19 Response Webinar Series for Charcoal Briquette Producers:
  3. Sustainable Energy For All Webinar Series
  4. TCP Sustainable Charcoal Webinar Series
  1. MIT D-Lab Biomass Fuels & Cookstoves Research
  2. World Agroforestry (ICRAF) Research
    • The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) promotes the World Agroforestry (ICRAF), an institution that conducts global agroforest research to develop practices that ensure food security and environmental stability and work towards several SDGs.
  3. Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) Data and Evidence
    • This link features up to date data compiled by Sustainable Energy for All, demonstrating the efforts towards meeting SDG7 and the goals of the Paris Agreement. The content includes reports from 2019 and 2020, presented by SEforALL, the Climate Policy initiative, #coolingforall and others.
  4. Clean Cooking Alliance Technology and Fuels
    • This resource from Clean Cooking Alliance expands on the standards and testing applied to sustainable technology and fuels, highlighting them as a tool for setting achievable goals that can strengthen national policies and drive stove and fuel innovation.

1. Challenges and Opportunities for Charcoal Briquette Enterprises in East Africa – June 2021

  • On March 30, 2021, The Charcoal Project hosted a webinar titled “Charcoal Briquette Enterprises: Challenges and Opportunities in East Africa.” This policy brief summarizes the findings from various projects, lessons, and recommendations made during the webinar.

2. Diverse Options Exist for Securing Sustainable Feedstock for Charcoal in the Global South – February 2021

  • On February 10, 2021, The Charcoal Project hosted a webinar titled “Securing Sustainable Feedstocks for Wood Charcoal.” This policy brief summarizes the findings from various projects and lessons and recommendations made during the webinar.
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