One billion people across Africa still rely on polluting fuels such as wood, charcoal, and dung for cooking—practices that contribute to over 800,000 premature deaths each year and reinforce cycles of poverty, poor health, and gender inequality. But a new report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) signals that this reality can be reversed within just 15 years, if decisive action is taken now.
In its newly released report, Universal Access to Clean Cooking in Africa, the IEA presents a clear, country-by-country roadmap showing how sub-Saharan Africa could achieve full access to clean cooking solutions by 2040. The roadmap draws on real-world data and policy successes from other developing economies and adapts them to African contexts—highlighting both the urgency and the feasibility of change.
Currently, four out of five African families still cook with open fires or basic stoves, causing significant health and environmental harm. The IEA’s roadmap calls for a massive scale-up—reaching 80 million people per year with clean cooking solutions, compared to the current pace of progress, which is much slower.
The plan prioritizes liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), expected to serve over 60% of newly connected households, while the remainder will gain access through electricity, bioethanol, biogas, and advanced biomass cookstoves. Urban households are expected to achieve nearly universal access by 2035, with rural expansion continuing steadily through the 2030s.
The roadmap estimates that achieving universal access would require about $37 billion in cumulative investment through 2040—approximately $2 billion per year. This figure represents less than 0.1% of the annual global investment in energy.
The investments will go toward household-level equipment such as stoves and canisters, as well as infrastructure development including distribution networks and electricity grid upgrades.
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol emphasized the attainability of the goal. “This problem is solvable with technologies we already have,” he said. “It would cost a fraction of what the world invests in energy each year. What’s needed is stronger focus and coordinated action from governments, industry, and development partners.”
Beyond the environmental advantages, the report outlines profound socio-economic impacts. An estimated 4.7 million premature deaths could be prevented across the continent by 2040. Women and girls, who often spend hours each day collecting fuel and cooking, could reclaim up to two hours daily—time that could be redirected to education or income-generating activities.
The transition would also create an estimated 460,000 permanent jobs in the clean cooking sector, from fuel distribution to equipment maintenance.
On the environmental front, the roadmap projects that clean cooking access could avoid up to 540 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually by 2040, largely by reducing reliance on wood and charcoal and preventing deforestation.
The IEA’s roadmap follows the Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa, co-hosted with the Government of Tanzania in May 2024 in Paris. The summit mobilized over $2.2 billion in public and private commitments, with more than $470 million already disbursed.
Since the summit, 10 out of 12 African governments have implemented new clean cooking policies. Today, over 70% of the African population without access to clean cooking lives in countries that have adopted strengthened policy frameworks.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan of Tanzania, a co-host of the summit, called clean cooking “a daily necessity, not a luxury.” She added, “From rural villages to growing cities, Tanzania is introducing new policies that support the most vulnerable. But we cannot do it alone—continued global support is vital.”
Meanwhile, the African Union formally adopted the Dar es Salaam Declaration on Clean Cooking earlier this year, with backing from 30 Heads of State. African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy, Lerato Mataboge, emphasized that clean cooking is foundational to public health, economic growth, and gender equality.
As South Africa holds the G20 Presidency in 2025, momentum is building to address one of Africa’s most urgent energy and public health challenges. The IEA has pledged to continue tracking the implementation of commitments made at the summit, publishing regular updates on policy progress, financing, and on-the-ground results.
The roadmap underscores a crucial point: the lack of clean cooking is not a technological or financial failure—it is a failure of prioritization. With global support, regional leadership, and a fraction of current energy spending, universal access is within reach. The time to act is now.
