Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 15 (2011) 1427–1441 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser Evaluation of the impact of access to electricity: A comparative analysis of South Africa, China, India and Brazil Marcio Giannini Pereira a,∗ , José Antonio Sena a,b , Marcos Aurélio Vasconcelos Freitas a,b , Neilton Fidelis da Silva a,b a Energy Planning Program (PPE), Coordination of Postgraduate Programs in Engineering at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (COPPE/UFRJ), Bloco C, Sala C-211, C.P. 68565, Cidade Universitária, Ilha do Fundão, CEP 21945-970, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil b International Virtual Institute of Global Change – IVIG, Centro de Tecnologia Bloco I, Sala 129, C.P. 68501, Cidade Universitária, CEP 21945-970, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil article info Article history: Received 4 October 2010 Accepted 4 November 2010 Keywords: Rural electrification Impacts South Africa China India Brazil abstract Most developing countries include rural electrification programs in their efforts to improve social con- ditions. There are, however, several obstacles to the evaluation of such programs and therefore of their social, economic, environmental and energy impacts on the target population, particularly on impov- erished communities located in remote areas. Evaluation of the efficacy of public policies aimed at rural electrification in South Africa, China, India and Brazil enables such actions to be quantified and re-considered so as to bolster the sustainability of their planning and implementation and also so as to enable comprehension of the significance of access to electricity in relation to other aspects of the drive to improve living standards. The provision of electric energy amounts to more than access to a public ser- vice and should be considered an essential right, in a context of social equity and justice, which permits social integration and the access to other equally essential services. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents 1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 1427 2. The context of the evaluation of impacts ............................................................................................................ 1428 3. Methodological aspects of the evaluation of impact ................................................................................................ 1428 4. Evaluation of the impacts of rural electrification programs ......................................................................................... 1429 4.1. Impact evaluation in South Africa ............................................................................................................ 1430 4.2. Evaluation of impacts in China ............................................................................................................... 1432 4.3. The evaluation of impacts in India ........................................................................................................... 1434 4.4. The evaluation of impacts in Brazil .......................................................................................................... 1436 5. Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 1439 References ........................................................................................................................................... 1440 ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 21 2598 6137; fax: +55 21 2598 6482. E-mail address: giannini@cepel.br (M.G. Pereira). 1. Introduction Drawing up and implementing evaluation systems for public policy is an integral part of the re-structuring of the role of the State, and is significant aspect of changes in political and admin- istrative culture that result from restructuring processes. They are relevant, however, only to the extent to which they play an impor- tant role part in the adoption of new styles of public management, which are result-oriented, socially controlled, managed in accor- 1364-0321/$ – see front matter © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.rser.2010.11.005