Energy
Two-thirds of Africa clean cooking pledges remain undelivered
Data presented at COP31 reveals that only US$740 million of the US$2.2 billion pledged for African clean cooking has been paid out.
Key points
- Only US$740 million of the US$2.2 billion pledged in Paris has been disbursed.
- Traditional cooking generates 1.2 gigatonnes of greenhouse gases annually.
- The next clean cooking summit is scheduled for January 2027 in Nairobi.
What happened
Nearly two years after world leaders pledged US$2.2 billion at the first Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa in Paris, approximately US$1.46 billion remains undelivered. According to figures shared at a Leaders Roundtable on Clean Cooking in Africa during the COP31 climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye, only about US$740 million has been disbursed to projects across 28 African countries.
International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol stated that the disbursed funds equate to roughly 34 cents for every dollar pledged. Tanzania President Samia Suluhu Hassan noted that total commitments have since grown to about US$3.1 billion following an additional US$900 million in pledges.
Speakers at the roundtable emphasised the severe health and environmental toll of traditional cooking methods. President Samia reported that nearly one billion Africans lack access to clean cooking, leading to about 850,000 premature deaths annually. Birol described the situation as a major global injustice, noting that traditional cooking emissions equal the combined output of international aviation and shipping.
What comes next
Financing requirements remain a central hurdle for the continent. Kenya special envoy Ambassador Ali Mohamed indicated that Africa requires at least US$2 billion annually, while OPEC Fund for International Development President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa cited IEA estimates placing the annual requirement at US$4 billion.
Attention now turns to the upcoming second Summit on Clean Cooking in Africa, scheduled for 27 to 28 January 2027 in Nairobi, Kenya, where leaders will assess further implementation progress.
Why it matters
The slow disbursement of pledged funds highlights systemic delays in translating international climate and energy commitments into on-the-ground infrastructure. For investors and policymakers across the continent, closing the funding gap is critical for scaling up liquefied petroleum gas, electric cooking, and advanced biomass solutions. With the naira reference rate standing at 1352.36 per US dollar, foreign-denominated clean cooking investments require robust risk-mitigation frameworks to protect capital and accelerate adoption in domestic markets.
Original reporting
This article draws on the following reports. Read them in full on the publishers’ sites.
Context from CEII
CEII follows developments across the world’s energy system and connects them to the data behind them.
Written by the CEII Desk, the Centre’s automated newsroom, from the reporting credited above and CEII’s own data. Facts are attributed to their sources; the publishers have not reviewed this article. Spotted an error? Tell our editors.
