Clean cooking, despite its significance, is often overlooked as a policy priority. It must take centre stage on the global energy-climate-development agenda for reasons that go beyond convenience or preference. One third of the global population which is approximately 2.4 billion people worldwide remain without access to clean cooking. In India, nearly 60 percent of the population use traditional cookstoves. The issue of clean cooking is one of mammoth proportions.Unfortunately, millions of people continue to die prematurely each year from household air pollution, which is produced by cooking with inefficient stoves and devices paired with wood, coal, cow dung, crop waste or kerosene.
Clean cooking is an urgent matter of life, health, and environmental preservation. The harsh reality is that traditional cooking methods, relying heavily on fossil fuels and biomass, perpetuate a silent crisis that affects millions, especially women and children, around the world.
At the centre of this narrative lies the undeniable truth of its impact that it has on human lives. Every day, millions of households, primarily in developing nations, endure the burden of archaic cooking practices, where smoky open fires and rudimentary stoves fill their homes with toxic fumes. The World Health Organization estimates that nearly four million people die prematurely due to illnesses caused by indoor air pollution, with women and children being the most vulnerable victims. It is an alarming echo of injustice, a reality that demands immediate attention and substantial solutions. That’s more than the death toll from malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS combined. The smoke generated by open fireseeps deep into the lungs, causing respiratory illnesses, lung diseases, and even cancer. It is a scourge that traps communities in a cycle of poverty, perpetuating inequality, and stifling development.
Moreover, traditional cooking methods are driving environmental devastation, amplifying the global climate crisis. As households burn wood and charcoal for cooking, deforestation accelerates, resulting in a loss of vital carbon sinks and increased carbon emissions. This deforestation contributes to climate change, contributing to rising temperatures, erratic weather patterns, and more frequent natural disasters. In developed countries, almost all households have access to clean cooking – electrical or LPG run gas stoves. However, in many developing countries, people cook on open fires and with inefficient stoves that run on wood, dung, or other polluting solid fuels. In numerous communities, women bear the greatest burden of household duties, including the adverse social and health consequences of lacking access to clean cooking. The lack of clean cooking is also an issue in remote communities that are not well connected to the national energy grid in middle-income countries.
However, hope shines through amidst the darkness. The adoption of clean cooking technologies offers a ray of light that can transform lives, safeguard health, and protect the environment. Clean cooking is a way of cooking which uses sustainable fuels and modern cooking technologies that allows people to cook and heat their homes in a way that does not harm their health and controls the immediate effects on their environment. By replacing polluting fuels with cleaner alternatives such as LPG, electric stoves, or solar-powered cookers, it is possible to reduce indoor air pollution and save millions from the clutches of respiratory diseases. Clean cooking is not just a luxury; it is a basic human right that can empower the women by freeing up their time that can be efficiently utilised for education, revenue-generating activities, rest, or leisure.Enabling them to escape the shackles of energy poverty.
Moreover, embracing clean cooking solutions is a key steppingstone towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. It is a pathway to empowerment, offering opportunities for women to participate in education, entrepreneurship, and the workforce. As women become agents of change, the ripple effects will resonate through entire communities, fostering inclusive growth and social progress. However, taking clean cooking to the forefront of our global priorities requires collaborative efforts from governments, industries, and civil society. We must invest in research and innovation to make clean cooking technologies affordable and accessible for all, regardless of their economic status. Governments should offer incentives and create supportive policies that spur the adoption of clean cooking solutions. And we, as consumers, need to make conscious choices that support sustainability and human well-being.
Clean cooking is not just a matter of convenience; it is a moral imperative. As we strive for a sustainable and equitable future, let us place clean cooking at the heart of our energy, climate, and development agendas. By doing so, we can create a symphony of change that resonates with hope, health, and harmony, for generations to come.