The asymmetric effect of oil price on ecological footprint: evidence from oil-producing African countries

Abstract

This study investigates the asymmetric impact of oil price (OP) on the ecological footprint (EF) in the major oil-producing African countries over the period 1988–2018. Results from the dynamic seemingly unrelated regression (DSUR) and the countrywise FMOLS regressions establish the asymmetric impact of OP on EF in the countries. Both GDP per capita and non-renewable energy (NRE) consumption are also affirmed as drivers of environmental degradation, while renewable energy consumption is found to be a promoter of environmental sustainability. Furthermore, a unidirectional causal relationship is found from OP to EF, GDP and NRE, while feedback is reported between EF and GDP. Therefore, the study proposes the need for diversification of the energy mix in these countries through the formulation of policies that would drive renewable energy usage without slowing down growth.