Energy Transition and Crop Production in Somalia: Evidence from 1990–2024

Data on crop production, access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, annual freshwater withdrawal, renewable energy consumption, and population were obtained from the World Development Indicators (WDI) of the World Bank. Wood charcoal production was obtained from FAOSTAT, while conflict information was drawn from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP). These databases were selected because they provide annual series compiled using internationally recognized definitions and facilitate consistent comparison over time. Crop production is measured by the crop production index (2014–2016 = 100) and transformed into natural logarithms (LNCROP). Charcoal dependence is proxied by per-capita wood charcoal production, calculated as total charcoal production multiplied by 1,000 and divided by population, and then log-transformed (LNCHARCOAL). Clean cooking transition is measured by access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking as a percentage of the population (LNCLEAN). Freshwater withdrawal (LNAFW) is total annual freshwater withdrawals as a percentage of internal renewable freshwater resources; therefore, it represents the intensity of water use relative to available internal resources rather than the absolute stock of freshwater. Renewable energy consumption (RE) is measured as a percentage of total final energy consumption. Conflict intensity (LNCONFLICT) uses the annual UCDP series retained for Somalia. Logarithmic transformations are applied where appropriate to reduce right-skewness, limit the influence of extreme observations, and improve comparability of variables measured on different scales