Around one billion people in Africa continue to rely on unsafe and polluting cooking methods, posing serious health and environmental threats, according to a new report by the International Energy Agency (IEA). The practice, which primarily involves open fires and inefficient stoves fueled by wood, charcoal, and agricultural waste, is responsible for greenhouse gas emissions on par with those of the global aviation industry.

The report paints a grim picture: four out of five African households still cook with traditional fuels, contributing to indoor and outdoor air pollution that leads to respiratory and cardiovascular illnesses. Poor air quality from household cooking is estimated to cause over 815,000 premature deaths in Africa every year, disproportionately affecting women and children, who also bear the burden of collecting fuel—often at the expense of education and income-generating opportunities.

“This is one of the great injustices of our time,” said IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol. “It’s harming health, destroying the environment, and holding back economic progress—but it’s entirely solvable.”

Globally, two billion people still cook with polluting fuels. Yet, progress has been made elsewhere: since 2010, nearly 1.5 billion people in Asia and Latin America—particularly in India, Brazil, and Indonesia—have gained access to modern cooking technologies.

In contrast, sub-Saharan Africa continues to face growing challenges. The IEA warns that unless urgent action is taken, the number of Africans without access to clean cooking will rise.

A Path Forward

The IEA believes the solution is within reach. An annual investment of just $2 billion—equivalent to 0.1% of global energy spending—could provide clean cooking access for all Africans by 2040. The report advocates for a mix of cleaner fuels and technologies, such as solar-powered electricity, renewable gas, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), which, while not perfect, offer far fewer environmental costs than deforestation.

A summit hosted by the IEA in Paris in May 2023 marked a turning point, securing $2.2 billion in funding commitments from public and private sources, along with political pledges from 12 African governments. Since then, $470 million has already been mobilized to launch on-the-ground initiatives, including the construction of a stove factory in Malawi and clean cooking programs in Uganda and Côte d’Ivoire.

If the clean cooking transition is fully realized, the IEA estimates it could prevent 4.7 million premature deaths in sub-Saharan Africa by 2040 and cut greenhouse gas emissions by 540 million tons annually—roughly equal to the entire aviation industry’s emissions.

“The solutions exist. The cost is low. The impact is massive,” Birol said. “Now is the time to act—decisively and collectively—to put an end to this silent crisis.”