African countries have secured an additional $900 million in new commitments to expand access to clean cooking, bringing total pledges made since the inaugural Clean Cooking Summit in Paris in 2024 to more than $3.1 billion.
The new commitments were announced during a high-level virtual meeting that brought together Kenyan President William Ruto, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, African Union Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy Lerato Mataboge and International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol.
According to the IEA, nearly one billion people across Africa still rely on traditional cooking fuels such as firewood and charcoal, contributing to an estimated 850,000 premature deaths every year.
President Ruto said the latest commitments mark an important step towards closing Africa’s clean cooking access gap, noting that increased investment is critical to delivering clean, affordable and sustainable cooking solutions across the continent.
The IEA said $740 million of the $2.2 billion pledged at the 2024 summit has already been disbursed across 22 African countries, while more than 120 clean cooking policies have been introduced in over 30 countries.
The agency also unveiled a Clean Cooking Security Programme aimed at strengthening supply chains for cleaner cooking fuels, particularly liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), following global supply disruptions experienced earlier this year.
The latest commitments are expected to accelerate the transition to cleaner cooking technologies, reduce household air pollution and improve health outcomes while supporting climate and sustainable development goals across Africa.
