Firewood smoke kills 600,000 African women, children yearly – Adesina

• Published On: 28 January 2025 at 19:45

Akinwunmi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank, claimed that over 600,000 women and children die each year in Africa owing to a lack of access to safe cooking sources.

He made the statement during the Africa Energy Summit, which is presently taking place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

The summit, dubbed "Mission 300," is a collaboration between the African Development Bank, the World Bank Group, and other global partners to close Africa's power access gap through creative funding and new technologies.

The conference, hosted by the Government of Tanzania, aims to address the continent's energy concerns.

During a panel discussion with officials from the Rockefeller Foundation and the World Bank, Adesina noted that cooking with firewood and charcoal emits smoke, which kills 300,000 women and 300,000 children each year.

He described the fatalities as a terrible result of insufficient access to clean cooking solutions, pointing out that more than 1.2 million African women lack such access.

"Another key item is women's access to clean cooking facilities. Today, 1.2 million women in Africa do not have access to clean cooking, and 300,000 children die every year as a result of their moms' lack of access to clean food due to the secondary effect of smoke. "Every year, we lose 300,000 women," he added.

Adesina bemoaned the unnecessary loss of lives caused by improper cooking practices and urged prompt action.

"Why should somebody perish simply for attempting to prepare a decent dinner, which is taken for granted in other parts of the world? That's not acceptable! In good conscience, we just cannot do that.

"And that's why a big part of what we're trying to do is to make sure that women in Africa can cook decently without having to smoke; without their kids having to die because of that," he talked about.

The AfDB president indicated that reaching universal access to clean cooking in Africa will require $4 billion in annual investment, with the African Development Bank investing $2 billion toward this aim.

He cited commitments by Tanzania, Nigeria, and Ghana to provide 100 percent access to clean cooking solutions by 2030.

Adesina stressed that this project is more than just energy transition; it is about saving lives and protecting dignity.

Ajay Banga, President of the World Bank Group, expressed hope about the program, calling its goals attainable with the correct approach.

He underlined the importance of creating a favourable climate for private sector participation, including reliable currencies, solid regulatory frameworks, and quick land acquisition processes.

Rajiv Shah, President of the Rockefeller Foundation, urged worldwide benefactors to support the project and pledged $65 million to the program.

Amina Mohammed, the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, underlined the transformative influence of energy availability on rural populations.

She emphasized its ability to generate change through digital financial services, online education, and e-commerce, particularly for women and adolescents.