2.6bn people without access to clean cooking fuel – OPEC Sec-Gen

By Nneka Nwogwugwu

The Secretary General of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, has said that 2.6 billion people have no access to clean cooking fuel.

He said, “The world must be reminded of the stark fact that 2.6 billion people have no access to clean cooking fuel, 930 million of which are in my home area — sub-Saharan Africa.

“Additionally, 759 million in the world do not have access to electricity, 570 million of which are also in sub-Saharan Africa.

“Meanwhile, almost 3.8 million people die prematurely worldwide per year due to indoor pollution from using solid biomass,” he said.

According to OPEC, while the gap in financial support promised and that received is substantial, there needs to be more ambition on predictable finance, while developing nations must finally realise the promised $100 billion a year for climate action, ThisDay reports.

He added that various other funding sources created in recent years — including the Global Environment Facility, Special Climate Change Fund, Least Developed Countries Fund, Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund — should be fully funded and disbursed in a timely and predictable manner in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement.

Barkindo argued that it was of utmost urgency that this financing, and aid from a new finance goal, finds its way to the developing countries that need it the most.

He added that various other funding sources created in recent years — including the Global Environment Facility, Special Climate Change Fund, Least Developed Countries Fund, Green Climate Fund and the Adaptation Fund — should be fully funded and disbursed in a timely and predictable manner in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement.