Team Blitz India
DUBAI: The African Development Bank (AfDB), International Energy Agency (IEA), and Clean Cooking Alliance (CCA) plan to establish the Africa Clean Cooking Consortium (ACCC), aimed at comprehensively addressing the challenges hindering universal access to clean cooking.
In an announcement at a COP28 side event, ‘A Call for Action: Universal Clean Cooking Access in Africa,’ on December 5, hosted by AfDB, IEA, CCA, and the African Union Commission, the three organisations outlined their commitment to tackle the entire spectrum of activities essential for achieving accessibility to clean cooking.
This includes country-level planning, establishment of delivery units, development of country programmes, and facilitation of public and private investments.
The three organisations are strategically working towards transitioning the sector from incremental, smallscale funding to largescale financing. To achieve universal access in Africa, an annual investment of US $4 billion in clean cooking stoves, equipment, and infrastructure is required.
Fatih Birol, Executive Director of IEA, highlighted the urgency of addressing clean cooking, stating, “Clean cooking should be solved because it is a stain on humanity.
We are going to make 2024 a turning point for addressing this issue.” A full transition to clean cooking in Africa could lead to the avoidance of approximately 900 million tonnes of carbondioxide equivalent annually, aligning clean cooking with Africa’s net-zero ambition. The ACCC aims to position clean cooking as a prominent candidate for climate finance and carbon credits to support the necessary transformation.
Dymphna van der Lans, CEO of the Clean Cooking Alliance, emphasised the readiness of African governments to take the lead on this critical issue and underscored ACCC’s commitment to delivering stronger, more dedicated support.