POSITIVE CORNER #20: A quiet but significant step forward
- Bernd Lorscheider
- Jul 17
- 2 min read
Over the past two decades, billions of people worldwide have gained access to electricity for the first time – a quiet but significant advance that is fundamentally changing our understanding of global development.
A different perspective on energy and development
Twenty-five years ago, depending on the source, approximately 1.5 to 2 billion people lived without electricity. Today, according to the UN, this number has fallen to around 650 million – despite a population increase from approximately 6 to over 8 billion people!
Behind these figures lie tangible improvements: light for children to study in the evenings, electricity for health clinics and cold chains, and chargers for mobile phones that provide access to information, banking, and markets. This quiet revolution in energy access demonstrates how targeted investments, international programs, and technological innovation can work together to sustainably transform living conditions.
Recent analyses clearly show that the number of people without electricity has more than halved in just over 20 years. The development has been particularly dynamic in parts of Asia: countries like India and Bangladesh have been able to drastically reduce the proportion of their population without electricity access within just a few years, in some cases from hundreds of millions to tens of millions. At the same time, the data illustrate that "access to electricity" initially refers to a minimum level, but one that forms a crucial foundation for further social and economic development. (ref.https://ourworldindata.org/number-without-electricity )
The latest edition of the UN report " Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report" shows that most regions of the world are approaching the goal of universal access to energy. Only in sub-Saharan Africa does progress lag significantly behind other regions, although there have recently been significant technological developments in Africa that are increasingly harnessing the considerable potential of solar power. More on this later.
Encouraging signs: Millions gain electricity
According to international organizations such as the WHO, IEA and UN, the progress made so far proves how much is possible when political priorities, suitable financing models and affordable technologies come together.
"Since 2010, 1.5 billion people have gained access to clean cooking and 800 million have gained access to electricity, showing that with the right policies, progress is possible."
National and international institutions and leaders are demonstrating that they can lift billions of people out of energetic darkness. This requires far-sighted and attentive leadership that leaves no one behind, targeted support for weaker countries by stronger ones, and effective instruments. This reflects the emerging ω-dimension of leadership. It promotes cooperation instead of competition, connects and strengthens all stakeholders, and makes shared potential and progress visible. In the ω-dimension, leadership aims at developing and realizing universal, human standards for every individual, every organization, and every social community. "Thinking universality" here combines with "living diversity" as the foundation for sustainability in the coexistence and collaboration of all people in this ONE world.
Comments