Gender and Energy Poverty: Are Female-Headed Households More Vulnerable to Energy Poverty

Abstract

This research unfolds how gender and energy poverty intersect in Kyrgyzstan and whether female-headed households are more exposed to energy poverty than male-headed ones. The study uses the Life in Kyrgyzstan (LiK) survey data (2019) at a household level with its data. the paper constructs a Multidimensional Energy Poverty Index (MEPI) capturing deprivations relating to heating adequacy, reliability of electricity, cooking fuel and ownership of energy-related assets. Descriptive analysis shows large heterogeneity in energy poverty between regions and urban and rural areas. Logit models with robust standard errors and spatial controls are estimated. The purpose is to suggest the relationship between household heads and energy poverty. Female-headed households do not have higher levels of energy poverty after controlling for spatial and household characteristics, the estimated gender effect is very small and only statistically significant at the 10 percent level. These results reveal that energy poverty in Kyrgyzstan is largely driven by structural and geographic factors rather than household head gender alone, implying that spatially targeted energy and infrastructure policies are needed.