ANALYSIS OF HOUSEHOLDS DOMESTIC COOKING ENERGY PREFERENCE IN MINNA, NIGER STATE.

Abstract

Access to and type of energy used by households in urban areas is majority determined by the effect of urbanization. It mounts pressure on the modern urban services, facilities including energy and this leads to acute shortage and price fluctuation because many poor urban households will be lacking access to modern energy carriers. Urbanization alters both production and consumption structures which affects energy access and usage among urban households. Acute shortages and frequent energy price fluctuation as parts of the problems in Minna have compelled households to adopt various methods in energy utilization. His paper analyses households domestic cooking energy preference in the face of energy poverty in Minna. The study used multistage sampling method where the study area was delineated into 28 neighborhoods. Descriptive statistics was employed in the analysis using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS). Electricity, gas, kerosene, charcoal and fuel wood used with variety of cooking technologies were observed. 88.5% of the households indulge in cooking energy stacking or fuel switching in varying number and patterns as coping strategy out of the strategy out of the households that stack cooking energy, 51%, 12.7% and 2.3% stack two, three and four additional cooking energy types respectively. Among the low level energy sources which include charcoal and fuel wood, kerosene is the most used cooking energy fuel because it is easy to use against charcoal and fuel wood users who adopt them because of affordability and availability respectively. The study concludes that lack of access to regular electricity and petroleum products supply in the main rationale for energy stacking. It recommends among others, stacking and using efficient cooking energy type and technology and also improving modern energy access. In spite of the varying alternatives, household’s preference of domestic cooking energy is influenced by factors of availability and affordability.