Energy Access Has Improved, but Support Is Still Needed

Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report 2025, released on 25 June 2025, finds that almost 92% of the world's population now has basic access to electricity. That marks an improvement since 2022 — the first decade-long decline in the number of people without basic access — but over 666 million people still remain unconnected, meaning the current rate of progress is insufficient to reach universal access by 2030. Access to clean cooking is advancing, but more slowly than in the 2010s, with efforts held back by the Covid-19 pandemic, energy price shocks and debt crises.

The role of distributed renewables

The report, which tracks progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 7, highlights distributed renewable energy — mini-grids and off-grid solar — as the key to accelerating access, since most of the unconnected population lives in remote, lower-income and fragile areas. Cost-effective and rapidly scalable, decentralised solutions can reach these rural communities.

Decentralised approaches are also needed for clean cooking. An estimated 1.5 billion people in rural areas still lack access to clean cooking, and over 2 billion people worldwide remain dependent on polluting, hazardous fuels such as firewood and charcoal. Off-grid clean technologies — household biogas plants and mini-grids enabling electric cooking — can reduce the serious health impacts of household air pollution.

Signs of progress

There was notable progress on several indicators. International financial flows to developing countries in support of clean energy grew for the third year in a row, reaching USD 21.6 billion in 2023 — a 27% increase on 2022, though still below the 2016 peak of USD 28.4 billion. Installed renewables capacity in developing countries reached a new high of 341 watts per capita, up from 155 watts in 2015.

IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera noted that renewables have seen record growth, underlining their affordability and scalability, but warned that progress must accelerate — infrastructure gaps reflect limited access to financing, and strengthened international cooperation is needed to scale up affordable, impact-driven capital for the least developed countries.

Regional disparities persist

Sub-Saharan Africa lags behind on most indicators. Renewables deployment there has expanded rapidly but averages just 40 watts of installed capacity per capita — one-eighth of the average of other developing countries, and far below the 1,100+ watts installed in developed countries. Eighty-five per cent of the global population without electricity access lives in the region, four in five families lack clean cooking access, and the number without clean cooking access continues to grow by around 14 million people each year.

Key findings

• Around 310 million people have gained electricity access since 2015, yet 18 of the 20 countries with the largest access deficits in 2023 were in sub-Saharan Africa. Central and Southern Asia made the greatest strides, cutting their basic access gap from 414 million in 2010 to just 27 million in 2023.
• Clean cooking access rose from 64% of the world's population in 2015 to 74% in 2023, but around 2.1 billion people still rely on polluting fuels. On current trends, only 78% of the global population will have clean cooking access by 2030.
• Renewables made up 17.9% of total final energy consumption in 2022, with installed capacity reaching 478 watts per capita globally in 2023 — almost 13% growth on 2022, but not enough to meet climate and development goals.
• Global energy intensity improved by 2.1% in 2022 — four times better than 2021's weak 0.5%, but well short of the 4% annual improvement now needed.
• Debt-based instruments drove most of the 2023 increase in international public flows (83%), while grants made up only 9.8%.

The report calls for reforms in multilateral and bilateral lending, more concessional finance, grants and risk mitigation instruments, greater risk tolerance among donors, and sound national energy planning — particularly for sub-Saharan Africa.

Story from IRENA.