Risk aversion and cleaner cooking fuel choice: an empirical study in Ghana

Abstract Cleaner cooking is an important policy objective in the bid to achieve sustainable development. Despite efforts to encourage cleaner cooking fuel use, biomass fuel is still widely used in many developing countries. This study investigates the role of behavioral factors, particularly risk aversion, in the choice of cooking fuels in Ghana. In addition, we investigate how the improvement of supply infrastructure and services mitigates the impact of risk preferences in fuel choices. By employing data from the recent round of the Ghana Living Standards Survey, we find that risk-averse households are less likely to choose liquified petroleum gas as their cooking fuel. However, the effect is mitigated for households located in districts with more supply infrastructure. Additional analyses reveal the influence of risk and time preferences in other household behavior.