Inequalities between Men and Women in Access to Energy Resources in the Western Savannah Region of Togo

Abstract

Access to energy resources in most developing countries, and in Togo in particular, is marked by a low rate of access to electricity from the centralized national grid and high consumption of biomass as the main energy resource for cooking. This masks strong inequalities, particularly those linked to gender, to the disadvantage of female-headed households and female household members. The aim is to analyze gender inequalities in access to energy resources in households in the western Savanes Region of Togo. This work is based on a qualitative and quantitative methodological approach using documentary analysis, field surveys, interview guides and interviews. Descriptive and economic statistical tools were used to process the data collected. The results of the study show that access to modern cooking energy resources is difficult for female-headed households, 45.1% of which still use agricultural residues, compared with 4.2% for male-headed households. Furthermore, the rate of access to electricity from the national grid for female-headed households is only 21.7%, compared with 48.7% for male- headed households. These disparities, which are more pronounced in rural areas, vary from prefecture to prefecture.