Examining the effectiveness of China's energy poverty alleviation policies: A text analysis on inter-provincial panel data

Drawing from data across 29 provinces between 2006 and 2020, this study measures provincial energy poverty levels, conducts a text analysis to quantify energy poverty alleviation policies, and applies a dynamic GMM model to evaluate the policy effectiveness on poverty mitigation in China. Results show that China's focus on energy poverty alleviation has been increasing annually, with a significant reduction in energy poverty. Policy intensity is more effective than policy completeness, while supply-side policies prove to be more impactful than demand-side and environmental policies. Additionally, the policy effectiveness varies across regions. It is recommended that the government strengthens policy support with a greater focus on providing environmental policies and develops targeted policies based on local characteristics.