Bridging the Finance-Energy Gap: Multidimensional Financial Inclusion and Heterogeneous Renewable Energy Adoption in Developing Countries
Аннотация
This study examines the relationship between financial inclusion and renewable energy consumption (REC) in 53 developing countries over the period 2010–2022. To capture the multidimensional nature of financial inclusion, the Multidimensional Financial Inclusion Index (MFII) is constructed combining indicators of Access, Usage, and Quality. The analysis employs fixed effects with Driscoll-Kraay standard errors complemented by Method of Moments Quantile Regression (MM-QR) to explore heterogeneous effects across the distribution of REC. The results reveal a positive and statistically significant association on average. However, the magnitude varies considerably across the distribution, with the largest coefficients observed among countries with the lowest levels of renewable penetration. Threshold analysis indicates that the marginal association diminishes after a critical level of financial inclusion is attained (MFII ≈ 52.3). Dimensional decomposition shows that the Usage dimension of financial inclusion drives the observed relationship, while Access and Quality function as enabling conditions. These findings underscore the importance of integrating financial inclusion policies with broader energy transition strategies, particularly in countries at early stages of REC, where expanding active financial usage may yield the largest gains.
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