The International Energy Agency (IEA) has raised the alarm over the continued use of open-fire cooking by nearly one billion Africans, describing it as a major health and environmental crisis that rivals the global aviation industry in greenhouse gas emissions.
According to the IEA, at least 815,000 Africans die prematurely every year due to poor indoor air quality caused by these traditional cooking methods.
In its latest report released on Friday, the global energy body revealed that four out of every five households in Africa still rely on open fires or rudimentary stoves fuelled by wood, charcoal, agricultural waste, or animal dung, methods deemed harmful to both human health and the environment.
“It is one of the greatest injustices of our time, especially in Africa,” IEA Executive Director, Fatih Birol, told AFP in a recent interview.
The Hidden Killer In African Homes
Naijaonpoint reports that the report paints a grim picture of indoor air pollution across the continent, identifying it as a leading cause of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.
According to the IEA, women and children bear the brunt, often spending hours searching for firewood and tending to fires, time that could be used for work or education.
“This is not just a health issue, but a matter of gender equity and economic productivity,” the report noted.
Beyond health implications, the IEA warned that open-fire cooking significantly contributes to deforestation and the destruction of natural carbon sinks, undermining efforts to tackle climate change.
According to the agency, greenhouse gas emissions from cooking with biomass in Africa are comparable to those of the entire global aviation sector.
“This adds to the destruction of forests and the worsening of climate change,” Birol added.
In May 2024, a landmark clean cooking summit hosted by the IEA in Paris garnered $2.2 billion in pledges from both the public and private sectors. Twelve African governments also made political commitments to address the crisis.
Since then, $470 million has been disbursed, with notable progress in countries like Malawi, Uganda, and Ivory Coast. Malawi is constructing a stove factory, while affordable stove distribution programs have begun in Uganda and the Ivory Coast.
The IEA insists that the problem is eminently solvable, estimating that just $2 billion annually, a fraction of global energy investments, could provide universal access to clean cooking solutions across Africa by 2040.
“For once and for all, this problem can be solved,” Birol said.
“$2 billion is just 0.1 per cent of global energy investment; it is nothing compared to the lives that could be saved.”
Proven Solutions Already Exist – IEA
The agency highlighted several viable alternatives, including solar-powered electric cookers, renewable gas, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
While LPG is a fossil fuel, Birol noted that it remains a better environmental option than deforestation caused by firewood harvesting.
The report stated that adopting clean cooking methods could prevent 4.7 million premature deaths in sub-Saharan Africa by 2040 and cut 540 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, equivalent to the yearly emissions of the global airline industry.
Despite progress in Asia and Latin America, where countries like India, Brazil, and Indonesia have transitioned nearly 1.5 billion people to clean cooking since 2010, sub-Saharan Africa continues to fall behind.
Naijaonpoint understands that the number of people without access to clean cooking in the region is still rising. The IEA urged African leaders, international donors, and development partners to act with urgency.
“Solving this is a matter of political will and targeted investment,” the agency concluded in a report made available on its official website.