Social-Economic Factors Influencing Biogas Technology Adoption among Households in Kilifi County- Kenya

Abstract

Biogas technology has been advanced around the world as a renewable source of energy by various organizations such as government agencies, International organizations and Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) (Rai, 2009). The technology is being advanced because of its health and environmental benefits (Brown, 2006).  In its effort to achieve vision 2030 the government of Kenya aspires to encourage wider adoption and use of biogas technology as one of the renewable energy sources. The purpose of this study was to analyze biogas technology adoption among households Kilifi County. The study examined the underlying factors of non adoption of biogas among households in Kilifi County. Descriptive survey research design was used. The sample size was made up of 150 respondents who were purposively sampled. Data was collected through structured questionnaire and focused group discussion and analyzed by use of SPSS version 20.0 soft ware. The data was analyzed using descriptive, cross tabulation statistics and presented using frequency tables. The findings from the study revealed that, various factors influenced adoption of biogas technology. These factors include; average household income, highest level of education of household head and unavailability of technical services whose root causes were: poverty, high school dropouts, and early marriages among women who are the main implementers of the technology. The study recommends that, the County government should employ strategies such as education and awareness, provision of loans and subsidies, provision of technical services and setting up of demonstration centers may go a long way in encouraging households to adopt biogas technology.

Keywords: Biogas technology, adoption, households, environment conservation