April 12, 2016
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- “Modern energy access” is finally on the international agenda, but the current common definition of 100 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per capita per year is far too low.
- To reflect likely demand and historical trends would require measuring energy usage at higher levels, such as 300 and 1,500 kWh per capita per year.
- Given that 70 percent of a nation’s energy is typically consumed outside the home, national development plans would benefit from country targets consistent with their industrial and commercial aspirations. Like income, per capita kilowatt-hour country categories could be useful benchmarks.
- The UN and other international bodies should adopt these new targets and definitions.
Topics
CITATION
Access Targets Working Group, Energy. 2016. More Than a Lightbulb: Five Recommendations to Make Modern Energy Access Meaningful for People and Prosperity (brief). Center for Global Development.DISCLAIMER & PERMISSIONS
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