Limited data on household energy is often a constraint to the formulation of domestic energy policy
and planning, hence a comprehensive household energy information or database is often considered as
a prerequisite for effective energy policy-making and planning for the improvement of the household
energy sector. In Uganda and most African countries, little consistent and reliable household energy
information is available on poor household's current energy consumption or demand for the need for
improved energy services. As a result, energy policy-makers and planners jointly have access to scanty
information. This suggests that policy-makers as well as planners are poorly informed about the access
and the energy needs of households and thus risk making policies which are contradictory to their
needs and preferences. An information database built through regular planned surveys in a
comprehensive manner is the objective of this study. A foundation for periodic up-date of household
energy is necessary and requires a proper institutional or structural set up that gives priority to
household energy issues. This study explores the fundamental need to shift away from the current ad
hoc surveys to a more reliable, systematic, comprehensive and financially effective way of conducting
household energy surveys to generate household energy information that is representative of national
picture and which supports effective planning and policy-making. Promotion of the importance of the
household energy sector in terms of social equity and improved living standards is vital for investors,
developers, financiers and policy-makers and planners to improve the sector. Thus the study addresses
the appropriate way of obtaining comprehensive household energy information and harmonized data
collection methodology through cooperation in information exchange amongst African countries to
achieve comparability of data for a common African energy database. The designed system was
applied to the Ugandan economy so as to identify prospecting policy implications in implementing this
system.