World Drifting Alarmingly Away From SDG-7: IEA

A new International Energy Agency (IEA) warns that at the current rate of progress, the world will fall well short of its 2030 SDG) 7 target for energy. In other words, large sections of people, particularly in the South, will continue to remain deprived of access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy even in 2030 and beyond unless the world steps on the renewable pedal with much greater force. 

Broadly, SDG-7 proposed to ensure universal access to electricity and clean cooking, double the levels at which efficiency has improved in the past and substantially increase the share of renewables in the global energy mix. The new report suggests that the world is drifting off course on all these targets, some more than others, owing to sluggish progress. 

The case for moving much faster on the path of energy transformation remains compellingly strong as this is likely to yield profoundly beneficial human dividends impacting the health and well-being of populations worldwide. It also will help in building our resilience against environmental and social risks such as air pollution and climate change. 

Despite some progress in increasing the share of renewables in the overall energy mix, the progress towards the SDG-7 remains tardy, the report notes. It is certainly not enough to achieve the 2030 targets. 

The report notes that for the first time in a decade, the number of people without access to electricity increased as population growth, primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa, outstripped new electricity connections. Result: 685 million people were without electricity in 2022, 10 million more than in 2021. 

Just as worrying is that at 2.1 billion, the number of individuals lacking access to clean cooking fuels and technologies has remained essentially unchanged in the past year. This inertia has significant implications for public health, gender equality, and the environment, which causes 3.2 million premature deaths annually.