At the 2025 Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) Global Forum in Barbados, Mrs. Samira Bawumia, founder and chair of the Africa Women and Children Conference (AFRIWOCC), delivered a powerful call to action, urging global leaders to urgently address the ongoing clean cooking crisis.
She emphasized that this issue is not just a statistic but a devastating reality impacting millions of lives, particularly women and children.
“This is not about numbers; it’s about real people—mothers, children, and families enduring immense hardship because they lack access to clean cooking solutions. This is a public health emergency, a climate crisis, and a gender equity issue that demands immediate attention,” Mrs. Bawumia stated passionately.
She urged for increased investment and inclusive solutions to tackle the problem, stressing that achieving Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7) which aims to ensure universal access to affordable, reliable, and modern energy by 2030 requires cross-sector collaboration and significant commitment from both the public and private sectors.
Citing global initiatives such as Mission 300, a partnership between the World Bank and the African Development Bank, which aims to provide electricity to 300 million Africans by 2030, Mrs. Samira highlighted that large-scale collaborations are key to overcoming these challenges. She also referenced Forward7, a Middle East Green Initiative focused on transforming 750 million lives through clean cooking innovation.
While discussing the importance of partnerships, Mrs. Bawumia urged stakeholders worldwide to prioritize the clean cooking agenda as a critical aspect of both environmental sustainability and public health.
SEforALL, a global initiative working towards SDG7, continues to unite governments, businesses, and international organizations to secure sustainable energy solutions. As the forum highlighted, the urgency of the clean cooking crisis requires immediate action and continued global cooperation.
