Household energy transition and its crucial role in saving infant lives in developing countries

This study estimates the impact of reducing household solid fuel dependence on the infant mortality rate (IMR) in developing countries, where traditional solid fuels such as firewood and coal are widely used. Utilizing panel data from 76 developing countries over the period 1990 to 2020, our findings indicate that IMR drops substantially as household reliance on solid fuels decreases. A 1% reduction in per capita solid fuel consumption is linked to an average 0.11% reduction in IMR. Furthermore, for each percentage point decrease in the proportion of households using solid cooking fuels, the IMR declines by an average of 0.5%. Notably, the detrimental impacts of solid fuel use on IMR diminish as income and urbanization levels rise. Our analysis shows that between 1990 and 2020, the reductions in the proportion of households relying on solid fuels contributed to approximately 23.2% of the decline in IMR in developing countries, potentially preventing an estimated 937,260 infant deaths.