SDG7 and Universal Energy Access: Can the third world attain it?

Of the 674 million, 90 percent of the energy-deficit population resides in sub-Saharan Africa, making it the largest concentration of people in the world without electricity access.


Renu MehtaRenu Mehta | Updated: 25-07-2018 17:59 IST | Created: 25-07-2018 11:15 IST
SDG7 and Universal Energy Access: Can the third world attain it?
Since energy is indistinguishably associated to other developmental challenges like health, education, food security, gender equality, poverty reduction, employment, and climate change, hence it is important to meet universal electricity access to attain other 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). (Image Credit: Twitter)

Energy, one among the key elements to sustain life on earth is important to meet targets for energy efficiency and attain sustainability. Energy plays a key role in all facets of human life. Energy is core to the development and provides a conducive environment for industries and businesses thrive and spur economic growth. Though energy has always been a subject of focus but with the adoption of SDG 7, which aims to “ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all, the importance of energy in the development agenda has been recognized globally. SDG 7 has five targets, to be accomplished by 2030,

  1. To ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services by 2030.
  2. To increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix by 2030.
  3. To double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency 2030.
  4. To enhance international cooperation to facilitate access to clean energy research and technology, including renewable energy, energy efficiency and advanced and cleaner fossil-fuel technology, and promote investment in energy infrastructure and clean energy technology by 2030.
  5. To expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern and sustainable energy services for all in developing countries, in particular, least developed countries, small island developing States, and land-locked developing countries, in accordance with their respective programmes of support by 2030.

Regional outlook:

Presently, one billion people, about 14 percent of the world’s population is still lacking basic energy services and about 2.8 billion people still lack access to clean cooking, the same figure as in 2000 and is projected to reach 2.3 billion by 2030, said a report published by the International Energy Agency (IEA) entitled Energy Access Outlook: from Poverty to Prosperity in October 2017.

Here's a sneak-peek into the report:

  • In spite of the huge population lacking access to energy services, the report shows a positive trend, since the number of people without access to electricity reaches 1 billion, down from 1.6 billion in 2000. It is on track to decline to 674 million by 2030.
  • The goal to attain energy sustainability by 2030 has already started making significant progress. Asia is progressing at a much greater pace, where many countries in the region are well on track to reach universal energy access by 2030.
  • Interestingly, India is expected to accomplish the goal of universal access by the early 2020s.
  • China reached full electrification in 2015, while 100 million people in Indonesia and 90 million in Bangladesh gained access since 2000.
  • Electrification efforts in sub-Saharan Africa outpaced population growth for the first time in 2014, leading to a decrease in the number of people without access in the region.
  • Latin America and the Middle East reach 99 per cent and 95 per cent electrification respectively.

What spurred the universal access to energy over the years?

While a majority of the world relies on fossil fuels as the primary source of energy, the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy, off-grid and mini-grid systems has provided more than a third of new connections in the past few years. Renewable, according to IEA analysis are projected to provide new electricity access for three-in-five people, by 2030. Renewable account for 34 per cent of new connections since 2012, and off-grid and mini-grid systems for 6 per cent and this shift from traditional sources will completely transform the energy access landscape over the coming years. Renewables are likely to replace fossil fuels as the dominant source of electrical power with a 60 per cent share by 2030.

(Image Credit: Wikipedia)

Mini-grids are defined as one or more local generation units supplying electricity to domestic, commercial or institutional consumers over a local distribution grid.  Renewable energy-based mini-grids utilize locally available renewable energy sources like solar, wind, biomass or hydro-power to meet energy demands, thus avoiding pollution and climatic effects. Moreover, they can also operate on diesel generators which are not as economical as those based on renewable.

Mini-grids and off-grid solutions to energy supply are experiencing rapid falls in cost, because of technology improvements and scale economies in supplying growing markets. According to the World Bank, one-third of total investments toward achieving universal access by 2030 will be targeted to mini-grids, with the vast majority (over 90 per cent) coming from renewable energy generation. Support to mini-grid and off-grid programs is growing the fastest, from roughly USD 200 million a year in recent years to USD 600 million last year. 

Replacing carbon-intensive energy sources with renewable energy will not only fulfil the growing energy demands but will also significantly,

  • Reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
  • Improve public health with the reduced pollution level
  • Improve economy by creating value chains for development and job creation
  • Reduce energy prices and contribute to eliminating the worldwide energy poverty
  • Improve reliability, since renewable like wind, solar, geothermal, hydropower etc are less prone to failure. For instance, weather disruptions at one particular geographical area won’t affect the power supply to the entire region

While there are innumerable advantages of renewable but this progress is not enough to bring the world on a sustainable track. With impressive gains in electricity, renewables, however, lag behind to serve other purposes like heating and transport which together account for 80 per cent of global energy consumption. Despite the promises they offer, they often lack regulatory framework, financial support and poor business-models which affect their penetration level, mostly in developing countries.

Universal energy access is a big opportunity to harness the power of renewables, to bring an equitable and sustainable future for energy. It is not only limited to electrifying homes but it goes beyond domestic-use to industrial demands, mitigating climate and health-risks, lower air pollution, agricultural, transport and much more. Since energy is indistinguishably associated to other developmental challenges like health, education, food security, gender equality, poverty reduction, employment, and climate change, hence it is important to meet universal electricity access to attain other 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

Access to clean cooking is as important as electrifying homes

According to the “Tracking SDG7: Energy Progress Report”, a joint report from the International Energy Agency, International Renewable Energy Agency, United Nations Statistics Division, World Bank and World Health Organization, we are moving in the right direction on most SDG7 targets, but nowhere near fast enough to achieve SDG7 by 2030. 

(Image Credit: Twitter)

Access to clean cooking is still disappointing in most part of the world. It still lags behind electrification. The absolute number of people without access to clean cooking has barely moved in over a decade, as population growth has outpaced gains. The global access-deficit of about 2.8 billion are mostly concentrated in three geographical regions- 1.08 billion live in Central Asia and Southern Asia; 881 million live in Eastern Asia and Southeastern Asia; and 862 million live in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The pace of progress is most troubling in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa where the number of people without access to clean cooking rose by 275 million. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the overall population grew four times as fast as the population with access to clean cooking.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) 2016 statistics, the exposure to traditional cooking fuels causes some 4 million premature deaths each year, and 54 per cent of them are women and children.

Why Africa needs more attention?

Apart from the huge progress made over the years, 674 million people are set to remain without electricity access in 2030. Of the 674 million, 90 per cent of the energy-deficit population resides in sub-Saharan Africa, making it the largest concentration of people in the world without electricity access.

A number of countries in the region are close to achieving universal access to energy but overall progress has been uneven in each of its sub-regions. As per the IEA statistics,

  • In 2016, eight countries had an access rate above 80 per cent – Gabon, Mauritius, Reunion, Seychelles, Swaziland, South Africa, Cabo Verde and Ghana – while most countries had a rate below 50 per cent and some had a rate below 25 per cent
  • East Africa is the sub-region which has seen the fastest progress in electrification, with 40 per cent of access rates, yet more than 170 million people are still without access.
  • West Africa accounts for 30 per cent of those without electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, with an average access rate of 52 per cent.
  • Central Africa has almost 100 million people without access, 17 per cent of the total in sub-Saharan Africa, at just 25 per cent access rate, the lowest of all sub-regions.
  • Southern Africa accounts for nearly a quarter of the people without access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, with an access rate of 31 per cent, excluding South Africa with 86 per cent of access rate.

(Video Credit: World Bank)

If the current situation persists, the situation will get even worse, with the population explosion in the near future. Taking the above figures into account, a substantial acceleration of efforts and investments is the need of the hour to attain sustainability to ensure that no one is left behind.

Looking ahead, the world needs much greater efforts to mount the penetration of energy and to accelerate global progress towards the goal in the coming years.

How can we address this?

  • Integrating renewable energy technologies, energy efficiency measures, and innovation to meet energy demands.
  • Spurring investments and funding from the donor and private sectors to leapfrog traditional energy systems, to achieve universal access to electricity and safe household energy solutions by 2030.
  • Bridging the infrastructure gap and promoting regional integration
  • Implementing both on-grid and off-grid solutions to increase access to electricity in rural areas and support economically productive uses in business and agriculture.
  • Expanding access to clean affordable and reliable household energy and raising consumer awareness to avoid health risks. Policies and programs to promote clean cooking are well-informed by gender considerations. Every year, household air pollution kills around 4 million people from diseases including pneumonia, heart disease, stroke, lung disease and cancer.
  • Embracing new technologies and innovative financial and business models for effective delivery of energy services.
  • National, regional, and global action plans need to strive toward more equitable access to energy and greater convergence of energy use between the rich and the poor.
  • Build partnership among government, civil society, investors, entrepreneurs and other development partners for knowledge-sharing and regulatory advice to fix the urban-rural chasm and provide energy services to the ones, who need them.
  • Embracing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) such as the Internet of Things (IoT) based smart energy grids, smart meters and big data and analytics to derive regional insights to further improve the delivery of services.

To sum up, right policies, international cooperation, strategic planning, global partnership, regulations, and investments will pave the pathway to universal energy access by 2030. Thus the priority is not only to provide energy access to all but also an urgent need to achieve it fast enough to reduce the global energy poverty and achieve sustainability.

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