ABOUT 2.3 billion people around the world are still using polluting fuels to cook and 675 million don’t have electricity, according to a damning new report released today by five international organisations.

The report said that at current rates, 660m people are projected to be without electricity and 1.9bn won’t have clean cooking opportunities by 2030.

The report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), International Renewable Energy Agency, UN Statistics Division, World Bank and World Health Organisation said that at the midway point towards the goal, the world is not on track to reach the energy target of 2030, which will negatively affect the health of millions and accelerate climate change.

“The energy crisis, sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, continues to have a profound impact on people all around the world,” IEA executive director Fatih Birol said in a statement. 

According to the report, global access to electricity increased from 84 per cent in 2010 to 91 per cent in 2021.

But more than 80 per cent of those without electricity, some 567m of whom lived in sub-Saharan Africa.

According to estimates by the World Health Organisation in 2019, 3.2m premature deaths every year were attributable to household air pollution from polluting fuels and technologies.