ENERGY AND THE MILLENIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Energy is an essential component to many development issues such as education, health, gender equality, income generating activities etc and provision of access to clean modern fuels and energy services can bring about multiple and synergistic development impacts. Energy is relevant to and underpins all the MDG as articulated succinctly by DFID and UNDP and the same is reproduced below.

1 Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger Energy inputs such as electricity and fuels are essential to generate jobs, industrial activities, transportation, commerce, micro-enterprises and agriculture outputs. Most staple foods must be processed, conserved and cooked, requiring heat from various fuels.

2 Achieve universal primary education To attract teachers to rural areas electricity is needed for homes and schools. After dusk study requires illumination. Many children, especially girls, do not attend primary schools in order to carry wood and water to meet family subsistence needs.

3 Promote gender equality and empower women Lack of access to modern fuels and electricity contributes to gender inequality. Women are responsible for most household cooking and water boiling activities. This takes time away from other productive activities as well as from educational and social participation. Access to modern fuels eases women’s domestic burden and allows them to pursue educational, economic and other opportunities.

4 Reduce child mortality Diseases caused by unboiled water, and respiratory illness caused by the effects of indoor air pollution from traditional fuels and stoves, directly contribute to infant and child disease and mortality.

5 Improve maternal health Women are disproportionately affected by indoor air pollution and water- and food-borne illnesses. Lack of electricity in health clinics, illumination for nighttime deliveries, and the daily drudgery and physical burden of fuel collection and transport all contribute to poor maternal health conditions, especially in rural areas.

6 Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases Electricity for communication such as radio and television can spread important public health information to combat deadly diseases. Health care facilities, doctors and nurses, all require electricity and the services that it provides (illumination, refrigeration, sterilization, etc) to deliver effective health services.

7 Ensure environmental sustainability Energy production, distribution and consumption has many adverse effects on the local, regional and global environment including indoor, local and regional air pollution, local particulates, land degradation, acidification of land and water, and climate change. Cleaner energy systems are needed to address all of these effects and to contribute to environmental sustainability.

8 Develop a global partnership for development The World Summit for Sustainable Development called for partnerships between public entities, development agencies, civil society and the private sector to support sustainable development, including the delivery of affordable, reliable and environmentally sustainable energy services.