Economics of U sing Improved Firewood Cooking Stove and Its Contribution on Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation

Abstract

This paper was an attempt to reveal the less known economics of using improved firewood cooking stove (ICS) and its contribution to climate change using Chamwino and Kilosa Districts, Tanzania as a case study. Data were collected through questionnaire survey and focus group discussions (FGD) to analyse variances between villages and in-depth testing of CCT to determine stove performance on emission level, time saving and firewood usage between ICS and the three stone cooking stove (3SF) in 120 households. Results revealed that ICS models save about 50% of firewood energy and 40% of cooking time, leading to 50% reduction in budget for firewood. Nevertheless, the use of ICS led to 65% reduction of GHGs emitted specifically CO and PM10 when cooking and 98% of the firewood collection time. High efficiency, especially in cooking time, was attributed to the two-pot design, energy conservation and high combustion efficiency by ICS.