Study On Influencing Factors Of Solar Photovoltaic Panels’ Purchase Intention In Zimbabwe

Photovoltaic solar energy has proven to be a feasible option for solving urban and rural electrification problems.The technology of solar photovoltaic panels has been vastly studied in various aspects,but little attention has been paid to examining the purchase intention of the photovoltaic solar systems in developing countries such as Zimbabwe.Due to the general country’s limited resources and rising fossil fuel prices,the supply of power has decreased significantly,increasing the gap between demand and supply.There is currently a scarcity of data on renewable energy in the country and as well as established structures to encourage renewable energy technologies adoption such as solar photovoltaic panels.Several studies have explored the adoption and acceptance of solar photovoltaic panels,few have examined the intentions and attitudes of consumers towards the adoption of solar photovoltaic panels in developing countries in Africa,specifically Zimbabwe.By suggesting and proving the technological acceptance model amongst other theories in PV solar panel adoption in Zimbabwe,this study will make a major contribution to the literature and bridge the knowledge gap by mediating the role of willingness to adopt in order to understand the consumers attitudes towards adopting solar photovoltaic panels.This research addresses the lack of innovation in prior studies that were previously published through examining the purchase intention of urban and rural settlers for solar photovoltaic panels in Zimbabwe.Based on the literature and theoretical framework,several factors such as the perceived cost;social influence;perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use influence the purchase decisions of photovoltaic solar panels.Hence,these factors were treated as the independent variables of this study,while purchase intention was treated as a dependent variable.Focusing on this relationship,the main innovation of this study is introducing the mediating role of willingness to adopt which is an area that had not been explored.The study adopted a mixed methods research approach using both the qualitative and quantitative methods to collect primary data from the targeted participants of the Matabeleland Region of Zimbabwe.The targeted participants(N = 362)were chosen based on non-probability sampling.Data entry and analysis was conducted on a Statistical Package for Social Sciences(SPSS Version20)and Smart PLS3.The results of this study indicate that all the proposed hypotheses are proven significant in the chosen study area,proving that through the mediating role of willingness to adopt,the purchase intentions of photovoltaic solar panels are influenced by perceived cost,social influence,perceived usefulness,and perceived ease of use.Nationally,the study will point out the opportunities not utilized in the sector of renewable energy in Zimbabwe by facilitating growth in the adoption of PV solar panels.Government agencies and regulators can also apply this study’s results to align the energy and agriculture sectors’ policies as well as other vital sectors within the economy to achieve optimum revenue by taking full advantage of the nascent solar PV technology and considering the consumers opinions for their benefit.The study acknowledged the importance of social influence in influencing the willingness to adopt especially in rural communities.Thus,emphasizing the involvement of all stakeholders,adopters,local communities,firms,international organisations,financial institutions,and the government being crucial in fostering the adoption of solar photovoltaics.This study not only provides rich policy recommendations for the promotion of renewable energy technology through the adoption of photovoltaic solar panels for Zimbabwe but other developing countries also stand to benefit from the results of this study.