ABSTRACT

This paper applies the market map tool to the Nepalese biomass improved cookstove (ICS) sector highlighting existing weaknesses in government policy and biomass cookstove market chains to provide recommendations to better address the social, economic, and cultural needs of users. This addresses the problem of low adoption rates of biomass ICS in Nepal. Our research objectives set out to explore the effectiveness of market maps designed for East Africa’s ICS sector (Stevens et al. [2019]. “Market Mapping for Improved Cookstoves: Barriers and Opportunities in East Africa.” Development in Practice) in Nepal, co-develop a revised market map for Nepal’s biomass ICS sector, conduct a parallel process for institutional-scale biomass ICS and draw on the co-produced market map to inform policy and regulatory frameworks relating to biomass-fuelled ICS. The methodological approach involved reviewing cookstove-related policy documents and regulatory frameworks, undertaking 31 semi-structured interviews, analysing findings from an Institutional Top-Loading Down-Draft (TLUD) Natural Draft Gasifier Pilot study and co-developing the final market map in collaboration with key ICS stakeholders. The results indicate that although government policy actively promotes biomass ICS, this often results in cookstove “stacking” rather than the sustained and exclusive use of clean cooking solutions necessary to promote health benefits. Attention is also focused on the underdeveloped nature of the institutional cookstove market. Our conclusions highlight the usefulness of market maps with a monitoring and evaluation element for identifying barriers to clean cooking uptake and facilitating product improvement by integrating end-user feedback.

摘要

本文将市场地图工具应用于尼泊尔生物质改良炉灶 (ICS) 部门，突出了政府政策和生物质炉灶市场链中的现有弱点，以提供建议以更好地满足用户的社会、经济和文化需求。这解决了尼泊尔生物质 ICS 采用率低的问题。我们的研究目标旨在探索为东非 ICS 部门设计的市场地图的有效性（Stevens 等人 [2019]。“改进炉灶的市场地图：东非的障碍和机遇。”实践中的发展) 在尼泊尔，共同制定尼泊尔生物质 ICS 部门的修订市场地图，为机构规模的生物质 ICS 开展平行流程，并利用共同制定的市场地图为与生物质燃料 ICS 相关的政策和监管框架提供信息。方法论方法包括审查与炉灶相关的政策文件和监管框架，进行 31 次半结构化访谈，分析机构顶部装载下吸式 (TLUD) 天然气气化器试点研究的结果，并与合作共同制定最终市场地图与关键的 ICS 利益相关者。结果表明，尽管政府政策积极促进生物质 ICS，但这往往导致炉灶“堆叠”，而不是持续和排他地使用促进健康益处所必需的清洁烹饪解决方案。注意力还集中在机构炉灶市场的不发达性质上。我们的结论强调了具有监测和评估元素的市场地图的有用性，可通过整合最终用户的反馈来识别清洁烹饪采用的障碍并促进产品改进。