Pobreza energética en Ecuador; año 2020

Abstract

Abstract: Energy poverty is conceptualized as a multidimensional phenomenon that reflects households inability to access and transform energy into the energy services required to perform basic domestic functions essential for everyday life. The Multidimensional Energy Poverty Index (MEPI) allows for the simultaneous capture of the incidence of this form of poverty measured as the proportion of affected households and the intensity of energy deprivations, expressed as the average number of shortages experienced by those households. The MEPI is constructed from five dimensions initially weighted equally, following a normative approach, and incorporates an empirical weighting scheme using the Madeleine learning algorithm. Analytically, a dual threshold is introduced to distinguish between moderate and severe energy poverty, providing greater precision in the characterization of the phenomenon. The results show that energy poverty is a widespread and heterogeneous problem with a strong territorial dimension, revealing a transition from an access-centered form of poverty toward limitations in energy capabilities. Its incidence is higher in rural areas and in Amazonian and coastal provinces. Robustness tests confirm that the results do not critically depend on the adopted weighting scheme. The findings underscore the importance of designing differentiated public policies that are territorially targeted and sensitive to the multiple dimensions of energy well-being.