While latest data show a gradual decline worldwide in the number of people without clean cooking access, the COVID-19 pandemic is weighing additional challenges reversing this modest progress2. The problem in Sub-Saharan Africa is very severe, and the situation is deteriorating. The number of people without access to clean cooking has been rising from about 750 million ten years ago to 890 million two years ago – the highest deficiency globally. In some of the most deficient countries, only 5% or less of the population has access to clean cooking. And the effects are glaring. On average, almost 490,000 premature deaths occur each year in Africa related to household air pollution from the lack of access to clean cooking facilities. In 2019, indoor air pollution deaths reached a new high, accounting for 697,000 deaths across Africa.

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