Securing sufficient, sustainable energy for-all needs a massive reduction in global inequality

By Joel Millward-Hopkins

Few people believe that the world’s poorest should remain in their current situation of material poverty – and fewer still would admit such a belief in public. Perhaps even fewer believe that it would be acceptable for humans to trigger a global ecological disaster. Most can thus agree that there are billions around the world for whom living standards should be improved, and that humans should endeavour to keep the only habitat in our solar system habitable.

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Health-Energy-Nexus: How off-grid energy can play a vital role in quality healthcare provision in Sub-Saharan Africa

By Jonas Bauhof and Callistus Agbaam

Access to electricity

In 2019, 770 million people were without access to electricity globally. They are left without the possibility of using electric light at night, powering refrigerators and stoves, or charging their phones and other devices. Until 2019, the number constantly decreased but the Covid-19 pandemic reversed the trend. In its World Energy Outlook 2021 report, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that between 2019 and 2021 the global number of people without access to electricity stuck at its pre-crisis level – after seeing improvements by around 9% annually since 2015. In Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), for the first time since 2013, the numbers are likely to have even increased in 2020.

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Sustainable energy supply: the case of health facilities in Ghana

By Jonas Bauhof

Access to electricity is still a major problem

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), 770 million people lacked access to electricity in 2019 – set aside sustainable energy sources. Three-quarters of these people – around 575 million – are living in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). While the numbers declined over the past decade, the Covid-19 pandemic has reversed the trend. SSA has been hit hard economically and for the first time since 2013, the number of people with access to electricity is predicted to have decreased in 2020. Continue reading “Sustainable energy supply: the case of health facilities in Ghana”