Despite steady progress in renewable energy deployment, 655 million people worldwide still lacked access to electricity in 2024, while nearly 2 billion people continued to rely on polluting fuels and technologies for cooking, according to the latest Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report.
The report warns that the world is not on track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 on universal access to affordable, reliable and sustainable energy by 2030.
Electrifi cation efforts, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, must triple to meet the target, as the region accounts for more than 560 million people without electricity.
Renewable energy continued to expand, supplying over 30% of global electricity, while global renewable generation capacity reached a record high.
However, progress in energy effi ciency and clean energy fi nancing remains insuffi cient.
International public fi nance for clean energy in developing countries increased only marginally to US$24.6 billion in 2024, with funding for the least developed countries declining