Energy Access

Failure to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 will be "unacceptable failure, both moral and practical" says Ban Ki-Moon.   None of the MDGs can be delivered without access to modern energy services for the 1.5 billion people who today live without it. A lack of basic energy service impacts all aspects of human life, from healthcare to clean water, proper housing, education and the potential to earn a living.

Rural communities account for 85% of energy poor.  International Financial Institutions (IFIs), and also most governments focus on grid-expansion and densely populated urban areas leaving the rural poor in the dark.

Key challenges include deployment of specially adapted financing mechanisms that can deliver on rural energification schemes, improved education, availability of local skills for project initiation, implementation and system operation; access to components for equipment maintenance and enhancement;  understanding and political support necessary to replicate enduring local ownership models. In the interest of our sustainable energy future the World Energy Council promotes dialogue on these issues and develops constructive proposals.