Energy poverty and unpaid work: Evidence from rural China

This study is the first to investigate the impact of energy poverty on unpaid labour in rural China, utilising a five-year panel dataset spanning from 2014 to 2022. The analysis demonstrates that energy poverty contributes an additional 4.3 to 6.1 min of daily household work for rural adults in China before the COVID-19 pandemic. Households affected by energy poverty bear a greater burden of unpaid household work compared to energy-affluent households, particularly affecting women in households that rely heavily on self-produced agricultural goods for subsistence and mothers with preschool-aged children. Factors such as a lack of household appliances, limited access to agricultural machinery and poor health status are strongly linked to increased household work burdens for these households. Additional analysis indicates that, following COVID-19 disruptions in 2022, rural individuals facing energy constraints experienced a greater increase in daily household work compared to previous years. These findings highlight disparities in unpaid labour across agricultural and non-agricultural households, between households using solid versus clean cooking fuels, and by gender. The study underscores the intersection of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 5 (gender equality and women's empowerment) and 7 (affordable and clean energy) and emphasises the critical need to address energy poverty in agriculture-reliant rural areas to improve women's welfare by reducing unpaid work.