African countries have secured $900 million in new financial commitments aimed at expanding access to clean cooking technologies, the International Energy Agency (IEA) announced Thursday. These funds will support the transition away from polluting fuels like charcoal and firewood to cleaner alternatives.
The latest pledge builds upon the $2.2 billion mobilized at the inaugural Africa Clean Cooking Summit in Paris in 2024. The combined commitments now exceed $3.1 billion and are designated for improving access to cleaner cooking fuels, stoves, and related infrastructure across the continent.
The announcement came during a virtual meeting convened by the IEA and Kenya, where leaders reviewed progress and set priorities ahead of the next summit scheduled for later this year. Nearly 1 billion people in Africa currently lack access to clean cooking facilities. The IEA estimates that the reliance on traditional fuels contributes to approximately 850,000 premature deaths annually.
Participants in the virtual meeting included Kenyan President William Ruto, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, African Union commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy Lerato Mataboge, and IEA executive director Fatih Birol.
"Access to clean cooking is one of the most impactful yet overlooked challenges of our time," U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright stated, emphasizing its direct effect on billions of people, particularly women and children.
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol reported that $740 million, approximately one-third of the commitments made in Paris, has already been allocated to 22 African nations. "The additional $900 million in commitments demonstrates growing momentum, with more expected before the next summit," Birol said.
Policy and Programmatic Developments
Alongside financial commitments, the IEA released a report indicating that governments have enacted 121 new clean cooking policies in over 30 African countries since the Paris summit. These countries represent about 80% of Africans without access to clean cooking solutions.
The IEA is collaborating with the African Union to assist governments in strengthening national clean cooking policies as part of a continentwide strategy and action plan leading up to the next summit.
Furthermore, a new public-private initiative, the Clean Cooking Security Programme, has been launched to bolster global supply chains for cooking fuels, particularly liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). This program addresses recent shipping disruptions that impacted approximately 30% of globally traded LPG earlier this year. Globally, over 3.4 billion people depend on LPG for their primary cooking needs.
The program will offer technical assistance to countries aiming to enhance fuel security and will foster international cooperation on clean cooking supply chains.