Influencing factors for household decisions on adoption and use of biogas technology: Case of Ghana

B.Sc. Peter Kwame Konadu, BSc

Master's thesis

Abstract:

Investments in renewable energy technology are required because the majority African nations experience energy insecurity. According to a 2011 report by the United Nations, everyone needs access to sustainable energy, especially in emerging countries, to meet the country's growing energy needs and mitigate the effects of climate change. The main objective of the current study was to investigate the factors that influence household decisions about the adoption and use of biogas technologies and the benefits of implementation in terms of socio-economic, environmental, health, and climate issues in relation among households in rural areas of the Offinso North district in the Ashanti region of Ghana. The research design for the current study was quantitative with surveys using questionnaires to obtain the opinions of the respondents to formulate the research findings. To achieve the objective of this study, explanatory and descriptive research methods were employed. The research focused on rural households in the Offinso North (Ashanti region) in Ghana, and stakeholders in government and non-government institutions. The sample size was determined based on the number of adopters of the household and who were willing to respond to the questionnaire in the Offinso North District. Convenient sampling technique was employed. It was found that household adopters strongly agreed that the price of biogas technology installation is greater, training related to biogas technology is difficult to access, and the advantages of biogas energy are not widely known. The findings also showed that the family is reluctant to use biogas technology, the ability to obtain credit is challenging, and the time saved by biogas can be used for other tasks that generate cash. Furthermore, having a reliable and sufficient water source is challenging, water supplies are insufficient and unreliable, crop yields are directly increased by biogas, and there are few livestock. It was also found that political backing and targeted initiatives to advance biogas technologies are lacking, there is lack of knowledge and minimal communication with potential adopters, there is lack of understanding among the populace as a whole, there is lack of consumer interest and public participation, adoption of biogas technologies is hampered by low literacy rates, adoption is still going slowly, lack of private sector involvement and ineffective public-private sector collaboration are obstacles to the uptake of biogas, installations of biogas entail significant financial outlays, there are not enough resources, and there is difficulty to switch from old technology that is free to a stove that has upfront expenses, and other demands are prioritized. Lastly, it was found that for the best biogas production, household adopters must use feedstocks with the right C/N ratio, Struvite deposits in the digesters should be monitored by the operator because they are challenging to remove, and to make sure the biodigester is correctly fed, make sure it gets the right amount of feed each day and check the feeding logbook are some approaches used by the government and NGOs in the development, design, and implementation of biogas technology in order to establish the causes of the system failure.

Keywords

household decisions, adoption and use of biogas technologies, socio-economic issues, environmental issues, health issues, climate issues

Jazyk práce: English

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 24. 4. 2023

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Obhajoba proběhla 30. 5. 2023
• Vedúci: doc. Ing. Hynek Roubík, Ph.D.
• Oponent: Tatiana Nevzorova, externi

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Master programme:
Agri-food Systems and Rural Development