Institutions Matter: Examining the Role of Governance in Bridging Energy Poverty and Achieving Inclusive Development in Sub-Saharan Africa

This study employs a balanced panel dataset comprising 46 Sub-Saharan African countries over the period 2000 to 2023 to examine the role of institutional quality in addressing energy poverty and promoting inclusive development. The dataset includes both constructed and directly sourced variables. The dependent variable, Inclusive Development Index (IDI), is a composite indicator developed using min-max normalization from measures of income, health, and education, sourced primarily from the UNDP and World Bank. Key explanatory variables include energy poverty (ENPO), measured as the percentage of the population without access to electricity, and institutional quality (INSTQ), computed as the average of six World Governance Indicators (voice and accountability, political stability, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law, and control of corruption). The dataset also includes interaction terms such as INSTQENPO to assess moderating effects. Control variables include foreign direct investment (FDI) and gross fixed capital formation (GFCF), both measured as a percentage of GDP, as well as population growth (POPG) and urban population share (URBP), sourced from the World Development Indicators. The dataset was cleaned, normalized, and structured for panel econometric analysis using Eviews 10 and is suitable for replication and further policy-oriented research on energy-institution-development dynamics in the region.