Shedding light on development: Leveraging the new nightlights data to measure economic progress.

ABSTRACT: Nightlights (NTL) have been widely used as a proxy for economic activity, despite known limitations in accuracy and comparability, particularly with outdated Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) data. The emergence of newer and more precise Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) data offers potential, yet challenges persist due to temporal and spatial disparities between the two datasets. Addressing this, we employ a novel harmonized NTL dataset (VIIRS + DMSP), which provides the longest and most consistent database available to date. We evaluate the association between newly available harmonized NTL data and various indicators of economic activity at the subnational level across 34 countries in sub-Saharan Africa from 2004 to 2019. Specifically, we analyze the accura

SUBMITTER: Jhamb P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11790135 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature