Clean cooking moves to the heart of Africa’s energy transition
Nearly one billion people across Africa still lack access to clean cooking, leaving households dependent on wood, charcoal and other traditional fuels that contribute to indoor air pollution, deforestation and lost productivity.
The issue took centre stage at a high-level event on clean cooking during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, where the African Development Bank Group called for greater political commitment and investment to expand access across the continent.
Convened by Kenya and Norway, in partnership with the International Energy Agency, the Clean Cooking Alliance and UN Energy, the event brought together heads of state, ministers, development banks, UN agencies and other partners.
It was the first time clean cooking had taken centre stage at a UN General Assembly, according to the African Development Bank.
The consequences of a lack of clean cooking extend beyond the kitchen. Women and children are disproportionately affected, facing health risks from household air pollution while often spending hours collecting fuel – time that could otherwise be spent on education, work or income-generating activities.
Kenyan President William Ruto said clean cooking should be integrated into national planning across African countries.
Kenya will host the second Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa in Nairobi in January 2027, where leaders and partners are expected to build on the momentum from New York and make further investment and implementation commitments.
No secondary issue
Representing African Development Bank Group President Sidi Ould Tah, Senior Vice-President Marie-Laure Akin-Olugbade said clean cooking could no longer be treated as a secondary issue in Africa’s energy transition.
“How a family cooks affects health, forests, productivity, gender equality, and the daily lives of millions of women and children in Africa,” she said.
The bank said clean cooking ambitions are now included in all 36 National Energy Compacts adopted so far under Mission 300, a joint initiative with the World Bank Group that aims to connect 300 million Africans to electricity by 2030.
Countries are pursuing different approaches, including improved cookstoves, liquefied petroleum gas, electric cooking, biogas, bioethanol and briquettes.
Following the first Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa in 2024, the African Development Bank committed U$2 billion over 10 years to the sector. It has so far channelled about US$135 million into clean cooking projects – a ten-fold increase on its cumulative financing before the 2024 summit.
Full steam ahead
Projects are already under way in several countries.
In Uganda, the bank is supporting biogas plants and subsidies to make efficient electric cooking appliances more affordable. In Tanzania, electric cooking devices are being incorporated into wider electrification investments. In Rwanda, results-based financing aims to expand access to clean cooking technologies for 100 000 households and 300 institutions.
The bank is also expanding concessional and catalytic financing through the Rome Process/Mattei Plan Financing Facility and the Africa Clean Cooking Programme under the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa.
Ireland announced a €300 000 pledge to support the work of the Clean Cooking Alliance during the New York event.
Akin-Olugbade said the impact of clean cooking should ultimately be measured by the lives improved, rather than simply the amount of money invested.
“Clean cooking must become a central pillar of Africa’s energy transition,” she said, calling for political leadership, sustained financing and action at scale. – Distributed by APO on behalf of the African Development Bank Group
