Short-run effects of grid electricity access on rural non-farm entrepreneurship and employment in Ethiopia and Nigeria

•Evaluate the effects of electrification on rural non-farm entrepreneurship and employment.•Analyse LSMS household panel survey data in Ethiopia and Nigeria (2010-2015).•Apply a contemporary staggered difference-in-differences empirical approach.•Do not find evidence of shifts towards non-farm livelihoods 2-4 years after electrification.•Find some evidence of short-term shifts towards farm employment in Nigeria.