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The existing literature extensively examines the impact of energy poverty on various developmental outcomes, yet there is a dearth of research investigating the empirical relationship between energy poverty and child disability. Therefore, this study aims to examine the association between household energy poverty and disabilities in children aged 2–4 years. The analysis utilizes data from the nationally representative Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys conducted between 2017 and 2019 in 15 developing countries, encompassing three countries from South Asia and twelve countries from Sub-Saharan Africa. To measure the severity of children's disabilities, functional domains, including hearing, seeing, walking, fine motor skills, learning, understanding, speaking, and playing, were considered. Energy poverty was assessed using a multidimensional weighted approach, which accounted for access to household energies such as electricity, clean cooking fuels, television, refrigerators, mobile phones, and more. Multilevel regression models were employed to evaluate the adjusted association between energy poverty and child disability. The findings of this study reveal that children residing in energy-poor households face a higher risk of experiencing disabilities compared to those in energy non-poor households. Furthermore, Sub-Saharan Africa exhibits a greater influence of energy poverty on the development of child disabilities compared to South Asia. Sensitivity analysis was conducted using Lewbel's two-stage least squares (2SLS) regression model to predict the standardized disability score derived from principal component analysis. The results consistently indicate that households with limited access to energy are significantly more vulnerable to severe disabilities among children aged 2–4 years. Therefore, to address this issue and enhance the well-being of children and families, governments and development partners in low- and middle-income countries should prioritize policies and programs targeting energy poverty, such as increasing access to modern energy sources, promoting energy efficiency, and implementing specialized social protection initiatives. The nexus between energy poverty and child disability. [Display omitted] • Child disability is a global public health concern. • Energy poverty is measured using a multidimensional weighting approach. • Multilevel regression model is applied for addressing hierarchical nested design. • Energy poverty in households is significantly related to developing children's disability. • Sub-Saharan Africa experiences a higher influence of energy poverty on developing child disability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children are considered to be especially vulnerable to energy poverty; however, there has been little empirical research on how energy poverty affects early childhood development in energy-poor countries. To overcome this, here we measure energy poverty and early child development using a multidimensional approach based on data from national multiple indicator cluster surveys (MICS). Using this data, we utilize mediation techniques to empirically investigate the impact of energy poverty on early childhood development using two mediators, namely living standards and child health. The results suggest that energy poverty hampers childhood development through living standards and child health. Findings also confirm that early childhood development has a statistically significant relationship with the living standard of a household, child health, gender, age, home environment, quality of the care of the child, the mother's education level, education level of the household head and the region of residence. Finally, we propose viable policy strategies to prevent energy poverty to ensure proper child development for future generations to achieve relevant SDGs in the investigated nations. [Display omitted] • Calculation of adjusted multidimensional energy poverty score for energy poor nations. • Calculation of multidimensional early childhood development index. • Mediation analysis is employed using multiple indicator cluster survey data. • Energy poverty hampers childhood development through living standards and child health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]