A focus on Ghana's sustainable development: Examining the interplay of income inequality and energy poverty.

This study investigates how income inequality influences energy poverty alleviation in Ghana as it seeks to achieve a sustainable economy. Employing the Granger causality test on a dataset from 1990 to 2021, the results show that both Gini post-tax and post-transfer (Income inequality-ll1) and Gini pre-tax and pre-transfer (Income inequality-ll2) Granger-cause access to electricity and rural area access to electricity. Urban area access to electricity Granger-causes Gini post-tax and post-transfer. Similarly, an FMOLS test was carried out to introduce some controlling variables and results showed that GDP, trade liberation, urbanization, population growth, and financial development increase income inequality and access to clean fuels and technology, as well as access to urban energy, have a substantial impact on economic disparity. In addition, GDP, financial development, energy intensity, industrialization, trade liberalization, urbanization, population rise, and FDI all have varying implications on energy poverty. These results imply the need to include energy poverty reduction measures within income inequality reduction policies to enhance not just access to today's cutting-edge energy but also affordability to the minimal income receivers. Other reforms and levies on electricity consumption options in renewable energy support can contribute to addressing income inequality and energy poverty issues in Ghana.

Exploring the impact of renewable energy on economic growth and carbon emissions: Evidence from partial least squares structural equation modeling.

The concern for environmental sustainability comes along with sustainable energy for consumption. Therefore, this study aims to explore the direct and indirect effects of renewable energy on economic growth and carbon emissions by employing Partial Least Square Structure Equation Modeling and Granger Causality Test and the data for this study is from 1990 to 2021. The results from the Partial Least Squares Structure Equation Modeling indicate that renewable energy consumption causes carbon emissions and has no effect on economic growth. Financial inclusion and foreign direct investment have positive effects on carbon emissions. However, renewable energy has an indirect negative effect on carbon emissions through economic growth. Foreign direct investment affects economic growth positively. Furthermore, the results from the Granger causality test indicate that renewable energy has a unidirectional causality relationship with financial inclusion and foreign direct investment and has a feedback causality relationship with economic growth. In addition, there is a feedback causal effect between financial inclusion and carbon emissions, a unidirectional effect running from carbon emissions to foreign direct investment, and a causal effect from economic growth to foreign direct investment. This study has suggested comprehensive policy recommendations for policymakers based on the findings.

Achieving carbon neutrality in West Africa: The impact of financial development and good governance.

Achieving a net zero carbon has been one of the main agendas for all state and non-state actors. The political system of developing countries sometimes makes both internal and external actors question their efforts toward the agenda. Therefore, this study contributes to previous literature in analyzing the empirical effect of financial development and governance quality on carbon emissions. The study covers sixteen West African countries with data from 1996 to 2021. The study employs the Generalized Method of Moments for the analysis. Financial development in all the models contributes to carbon emissions. However, the effect of governance quality indicators varies depending on the model and the indicator(s) used. Nevertheless, economic governance and political governance in most models contribute to environmental pollution, but institutional governance helps promote environmental quality. Renewable energy and economic growth promote environmental quality through carbon mitigation. However, trade openness promotes environmental pollution by encouraging the release of carbon emissions. Finally, relevant policy implications are proposed based on the empirical findings of the study.