According to the most recent data from the World Bank, 15 per cent of the world’s population—approximately 1.1 billion people—lacked access to electricity in 2014, according to a U.S. Energy Information Administration press release.
However, access to electricity has been generally increasing over the past two decades. In 1994, approximately 25 per cent of the world’s population lacked access to electricity.
Part of the increased share electricity share is attributable to the faster rate of population growth in urban areas; the share of the world’s population living in urban areas grew from 44 per cent in 1994 to 53 per cent in 2014.
Urban areas tend to be more electrified, but most of the world’s population without access to electricity live in rural areas. In 2014, 27 per cent of the world’s rural population did not have electricity access compared with 4 per cent of urban populations.
The electrification rate grew the fastest from 1994 to 2014 in Africa, the Middle East, and South and Southeast Asia. Investments to increase electricity access have significant implications for economic development and quality of life as well as the energy consumption and energy-related emissions for each country.
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- Dr. Francisco De La Chesnaye, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
- Dorian Mead, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
- Dr. Gang He, Stony Brook University
The 2017 EIA Energy Conference, held June 26 and 27, 2017 in Washington, DC, will examine current trends and key developments affecting energy at the state, national, and global levels.
Conference registration is open through noon Eastern Time on June 22, 2017.