Energy policy for the rural Third World

Book · Thu Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1976

OSTI ID:7333016

Makhijani, A

Development beyond the barest survival levels for the poorest two billions of mankind is often seen as hopeless owing to resource limits. This important paper argues otherwise. It is not lack of basic resources that prevents development. It is the lack of commitment by development planners to the poor. If this commitment could be made, and if carefully chosen appropriate technologies could be combined with equally appropriate social organizations among the poor, then the opportunities for true development are enormous, even with a tiny initial investment. To explore this crucial concept and demonstrate its validity, Arjun Makhijani focuses on energy resources and their vital role in providing for the most basic human needs. He shows that there are exciting technical opportunities for transforming the energy economies of poor communities in the rural Third World. But he also demonstrates that these cannot be grasped without parallel social and political changes. These are essential to achieve the best economics of scale--neither too large nor too small--and also to ensure that everyone partakes in and reaps the benefits of change. This paper, the first in a new series sponsored by IIED, is a contribution both to development studies generally and to the Institute's own energy program. This program is aimed, basically, at exploring the full range of choices over energy supply and demand open to all societies, rich and poor, industrialized and agrarian. The range of these choices, which include a vigorous commitment to conservation and renewable sources as well as the possible path towards full-scale nuclearization, appears to be very wide. Here Makhijani shows how wide in the context of the rural third world.

• OSTI ID: 7333016
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
293000* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Policy
Legislation
& Regulation
AGRICULTURE
COMMUNITIES
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
ENERGY CONSERVATION
ENERGY DEMAND
ENERGY POLICY
ENERGY SOURCES
ENERGY SUPPLIES
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
INDUSTRY
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
INVESTMENT
MANAGEMENT
PLANNING
SOCIOLOGY
URBAN AREAS