Electricity Access Alone Insufficient for Child Malnutrition Reduction

A cross-sectional study published in Discover Public Health in October 2026 examines the relationship between rural electrification, household food security, and child malnutrition in the department of La Guajira, Colombia. The research indicates that while higher electricity coverage is associated with lower rates of child malnutrition at the municipal level, electricity access alone does not significantly explain differences in household food insecurity. Instead, the study finds that the benefits of electrification are significantly enhanced when combined with household assets such as refrigerators, suggesting that integrated policies addressing both energy access and food preservation capabilities are necessary to improve nutritional outcomes in this impoverished region.

La Guajira is one of Colombia’s most isolated and socioeconomically disadvantaged departments, characterized by persistent multidimensional poverty, food insecurity, and high rates of child malnutrition. The region’s population is largely composed of indigenous communities, particularly the Wayuu people, whose livelihoods remain closely linked to the territory’s natural resources. Despite the region’s considerable cultural, mining, and energy wealth, structural inequalities and inadequate energy coverage remain major barriers to development. According to data from the Mining and Energy Planning Unit, national electricity coverage reached 92.7% in 2023, whereas La Guajira recorded only 54.5%, the second-lowest rate in the country, with disparities especially pronounced between urban and rural areas.

The study adopted a quantitative, observational, and cross-sectional design to examine these relationships during 2023. The methodological strategy consisted of two complementary stages: a descriptive analysis of territorial disparities and an econometric analysis of the associations between energy access, food insecurity, and child nutritional outcomes. Household-level data were obtained from the 2023 National Quality of Life Survey, while information on malnutrition was obtained from the Public Health Surveillance System. The selection of 2023 was determined by data availability, as it was the most recent year for which comparable information was simultaneously available for both research hypotheses.

Food insecurity was measured using the probability of moderate or severe food insecurity, estimated from the Food Insecurity Experience Scale. This indicator ranges from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating a greater probability of experiencing moderate or severe food insecurity. Information on malnutrition was expressed as a rate per 1000 inhabitants, using official population projections as the denominator. The descriptive analysis examined municipal differences in electricity coverage, access to water supply and sanitation services, refrigerator ownership, cooking fuel sources, food insecurity, and child malnutrition to identify territorial disparities across the department.

The econometric analysis was conducted at two levels to test specific hypotheses. For the first hypothesis, a beta regression model was estimated using household-level data to examine the relationship between food insecurity and explanatory variables including electricity access, refrigerator ownership, household income, educational attainment, household size, and cooking fuel type. A beta specification was selected because the dependent variable is continuous and bounded between zero and one. For the second hypothesis, an exploratory ordinary least squares regression model was estimated at the municipal level to examine the association between electricity coverage and the rate of child malnutrition, including 14 of the 15 municipalities in La Guajira.

During 2023, the department of La Guajira recorded a total of 2776 cases of child malnutrition. Of these cases, 57.2% were boys and 42.8% were girls, showing a higher incidence in the male population. Furthermore, 81.9% of cases were concentrated in children under five years of age, underscoring the particular vulnerability of this age group to food security issues. Analysis by sociodemographic characteristics revealed that 75.1% of cases belong to the Wayuu people, while 96.5% of cases are concentrated in stratum 1, representing very low-income households. These figures reinforce the structural link between poverty and the high incidence of child malnutrition in the territory.

The results of the beta regression model indicated that electricity access alone did not explain differences in household food insecurity. Instead, refrigerator ownership was significantly associated with a lower probability of moderate and severe food insecurity. Average marginal effects showed that refrigerator ownership is associated with a 6.2% point reduction in the probability of food insecurity. Conversely, each additional household member corresponds to a 1.4% point increase in the probability of food insecurity, while the inability to consume healthy foods corresponds to an increase of 51.9% points. These findings suggest that although access to electricity provides the basic conditions required for the operation of household appliances, its presence alone is not strongly associated with improved food security outcomes.

When electricity access is considered as part of the association pathway linking refrigerator ownership and food insecurity, the relationship between refrigerator ownership and food insecurity becomes stronger. This pattern reflects the complementary relationship between energy infrastructure and household assets, through which access to electricity may be associated with more effective food storage practices. Households with both electricity access and a refrigerator are more likely to have greater capacity to store and preserve food for longer periods, which is consistent with lower levels of food insecurity. This interpretation is consistent with the capability approach, according to which access to resources acquires practical value when individuals possess the means to convert them into improvements in well-being.

At the municipal level, higher electricity coverage was associated with lower reported levels of child malnutrition. The exploratory cross-sectional model showed that electricity coverage remained negatively and statistically significantly associated with the rate of malnutrition, indicating that municipalities with higher levels of electrification tended to have lower levels of malnutrition. However, when the interaction with the ethnic variable was incorporated, it was found that this relationship varied between municipalities. As the concentration of the ethnic population increased, the strength of the association between electrification and malnutrition progressively decreased, revealing that the geographical distribution of malnutrition was driven by heterogeneous dynamics.

The spatial distribution of child malnutrition followed an uneven pattern across the department. Uribia, Riohacha, and Maicao concentrated nearly three-quarters of all reported cases in the department during 2023. Uribia reported the highest number of cases, followed by Riohacha and Maicao. Such conditions restrict the effective use of household technologies and may reduce the potential benefits commonly associated with electrification, highlighting the importance of considering the ethnic dimension and territorial inequalities when examining child nutritional outcomes.

Several limitations should be considered when interpreting the findings of this study. The cross-sectional design does not permit causal inference; the results reflect conditions observed during 2023 and should be interpreted as evidence of association rather than directional causal relationships. The municipal-level analysis included only 14 of the 15 municipalities in La Guajira because one municipality did not report complete information, which reduces statistical power and increases the sensitivity of the estimates to atypical values. Additionally, the electricity coverage indicator reflects formal access to the service but does not capture other dimensions such as service continuity, reliability, or the effective use of electricity within households.

The findings suggest that the contribution of rural electrification to food security and child nutrition depends on the availability of complementary household assets and services. Policies aimed at reducing food insecurity and child malnutrition in La Guajira should therefore integrate electrification with broader interventions that strengthen household living conditions and food preservation capacity. Expanding electricity coverage should be accompanied by policies that support food preservation technologies, improvements in water and sanitation services, and healthcare access. Under these conditions, rural electrification becomes not only an infrastructure policy but also a strategic component of integrated actions to improve child nutrition and promote equitable human development in vulnerable regions.

Subject of Research: Association between rural electrification, household food security, and child malnutrition in La Guajira, Colombia

Article Title: Rural electrification and child malnutrition reduction through food security pathways in La Guajira Colombia

Article References: Coronado, D. A., de la Hoz Rosales, B., & Díaz, D. M. M. (2026). Rural electrification and child malnutrition reduction through food security pathways in La Guajira Colombia. Discover Public Health, 23(1), Article 1736. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12982-026-02987-8

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12982-026-02987-8

Keywords: rural electrification, child malnutrition, food security, La Guajira, Colombia, Wayuu people, cross-sectional study, beta regression, refrigerator ownership, household assets, public health, energy access, food preservation, municipal disparities, indigenous communities, poverty reduction, human development, health surveillance, statistical association, infrastructure policy