Factors influencing the level of use of alternative sources of energy among the Maasai pastoral community in Kajiado West, Kajiado County Kenya

Abstract

Conventional sources of energy are normally expensive and have a negative impact on the environment, requiring the use of alternative energy sources that have minimum impact on the environment, which the Maasai pastoral community in Kajiado West have not adopted. There was therefore need to assess the factors influencing the level of use of alternative sources of energy with a view of addressing the issues. The specific objectives of the study were (i) to investigate the influence of level of awareness of alternative sources of energy on the level of their use, (ii) to examine the influence of technology availability and maintenance of alternative sources of energy on the level of their use, (iii) to assess the influence of affordability of alternative sources of energy on the level of their use and (iv) to determine the effectiveness of the sources of energy and the level of their use by the Maasai pastoral community in Kajiado West, Kajiado County. The study adopted the descriptive research design. The study targeted Maasai households in Kajiado West. The sampling frame was made up of the Maasai households that were specifically involved in pastoralism. A stratified random sample of 183 pastoral households were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. The data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics in a Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (IBM SPSS version 26). The level of use of alternative energy sources by Maasai pastoral households in Kajiado West was found to be low (M=2.09, SD=1.76) on a scale of 0 to 5, while their use of conventional energy sources was found to be higher (M=3.06, SD= 1.92). The level of use of alternative sources of energy by Maasai pastoral households in Kajiado West was statistically significantly influenced by awareness of the energy sources (β=.633, t=10.99, p<.001), availability of technology (β=.402, t=5.91, p<.001), affordability of the energy source (β=.648, t=11.44, p<.001) and efficiency of the energy source (β=.628, t=10.84, p<.001). The study concluded that Maasai pastoral households in Kajiado West had low level use of alternative sources of energy. The study also concluded that awareness, availability of installation technology, affordability and efficiency had a statistically significant influence on the level of use of alternative sources of energy within the target households. The study recommended that the County Government needs to create awareness of the usefulness of alternative sources of energy, encourage multi stakeholder networks related to the provision of renewable energy technology. The study findings will be useful to relevant stakeholders in particular enhancing the alternative sources of energy required to improve the community wellbeing and sustain the environmental conditions in the area. The findings will influence policy formulation in the area of energy.