Experiences with the Mass Distribution of LPG Stoves in Rural Communities of Ghana.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Abdulai MA
PROVIDER: S-EPMC7366325 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Dec
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Experiences with the Mass Distribution of LPG Stoves in Rural Communities of Ghana.
Abdulai Martha Ali MA Afari-Asiedu Samuel S Carrion Daniel D Ae-Ngibise Kenneth Ayuurebobi KA Gyaase Stephaney S Mohammed Mujtaba M Agyei Oscar O Boamah-Kaali Ellen E Tawiah Theresa T Dwommoh Rebecca R Agbokey Francis F Owusu-Agyei Seth S Asante Kwaku Poku KP Jack Darby D
EcoHealth 20180919 4
Household air pollution (HAP) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. To limit HAP exposure and environmental degradation from biomass fuel use, the Government of Ghana promotes liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) use in rural Ghana via the Rural LPG program (RLP). We assessed the experiences of the RLP in 2015, 2 years after its launch. A mixed methods approach was used involving Focus Group Discussions (19) and in-depth interviews (25). In addition, a survey questionnaire was admini ...[more]
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Project description:BackgroundThree billion individuals worldwide rely on biomass fuel [dung, wood, crops] for cooking and heating. Further, health conditions resulting from household air pollution (HAP) are responsible for approximately 3.9 million premature deaths each year. Though transition away from traditional biomass stoves is projected curb the health effects of HAP by mitigating exposure, the benefits of newer clean cookstove technologies can only be fully realized if use of these new stoves is exclusive and sustained. However, the conditions under which individuals adopt and sustain use of clean cookstoves is not well understood.MethodsThe Enhancing LPG Adoption in Ghana (ELAG) study is a cluster-randomized controlled trial employing a factorial intervention design. The first component is a behavior change intervention based on the Risks, Attitudes, Norms, Abilities, and Self-regulation (RANAS) model. This intervention seeks to align these five behavioral factors with clean cookstove adoption and sustained use. A second intervention is access-related and will improve LPG availability by offering a direct-delivery refueling service. These two interventions will be integrated via a factorial design whereby 27 communities are assigned to one of the following: the control arm, the educational intervention, the delivery, or a combined intervention. Intervention allocation is determined by a covariate-constrained randomization approach. After intervention, approximately 900 households' individual fuel use is tracked for 12 months via iButton stove use monitors. Analysis will include hierarchical linear models used to compare intervention households' fuel use to control households.DiscussionLiterature to-date demonstrates that recipients of improved cookstoves rarely completely adopt the new technology. Instead, they often practice partial adoption (fuel stacking). Consequently, interventions are needed to influence adoption patterns and simultaneously to understand drivers of fuel adoption. Ensuring uptake, adoption, and sustained use of improved cookstove technologies can then lead to HAP-reductions and consequent improvements in public health.Trial registrationNCT03352830 (November 24, 2017).
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