Assessing Adoption Barriers to Solar Energy Systems for Enhancing Rural Socio-Economic Development and Climate Change Adaptation: A Case of Kaputa Boma, Zambia

Access to affordable, reliable, and sustainable energy remains a major challenge in rural Zambia, limiting socioeconomic development and climate resilience. This study assessed the barriers to solar energy adoption and examined the contribution of solar energy systems to rural socio-economic development and climate change adaptation in Kaputa Boma and surrounding off-grid communities in Northern Province, Zambia. A mixed-methods concurrent triangulation design was employed, involving household surveys (n = 345), enterprise surveys (n = 45), 22 key informant interviews, six focus group discussions, and field observations. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS Version 26, while qualitative data were analyzed thematically using NVivo 12. The findings indicate that Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) solar systems have significantly improved household access to lighting and phone charging; however, adoption of productive-use solar technologies remains limited. The major barriers identified were high upfront costs, limited financing, inadequate technical support, shortage of spare parts, weak policy implementation, and poor management of public solar infrastructure. Despite these challenges, solar energy contributed to improved household welfare, better educational and health services, increased enterprise productivity, and enhanced climate resilience through reduced dependence on traditional energy sources. The study concludes that expanding the socio-economic benefits of solar energy in rural Zambia requires strengthening financing mechanisms, technical capacity, institutional support, and public-private partnerships to promote productive-use solar technologies.