In 2017, more than 1.2 billion people around the world have little to no access to electricity.
87 percent of the world’s energy poor live in rural areas, hampering their ability to thrive in the modern economy, and widening the urban-rural economic divide.
All it takes is 2,500kwH of energy per person for a country to move near the top of the Human Development Index. U.S. households use around 10,000kwH on average per year.
Delivering electricity to the world’s energy poor could create 1.5 trillion additional productive hours — that’s the equivalent of 31 weeks of
full-time employment for each energy-poor
person on Earth.
If 60 percent of people living in areas without energy can quickly gain energy access through mini-grids or other off-grid solutions, the IEA estimates that we can achieve universal
energy access by 2030.
With energy access, social and economic development follows: Including better health care; improved food security, and more and dignified livelihood opportunities.
In India, 40% of fruits and vegetables to be sold at markets spoil because of lack of refrigeration, which requires reliable energy to power.
Electricity saves the environment: A 10 percent increase in clean energy consumption reduces kerosene consumption by 0.5 percent and lower biofuel collection time 3.3 hours per month.
In India, children living in households with electricity spend more time studying and engaged in productive activities than those households without electricity.
No available data.
Source: The World Bank
*All data for most recent years available.
Overlaid view
GNI per capita
Electrification
Overlay
GDP per capita
Electrification
Click the lighbulbs around the map to learn more about key areas.
More than one billion people around the world still live without access to energy.
What does that look like? The map below overlays two figures – Gross National Income (GNI) per capita and access to electricity. Using the buttons on the left, toggle between different maps to see how these issues correlate.*
GNI
Electrification
OVERLAID GNI & ELECTRIFICATION
3,956 – 12,235
> 12,235
< 3,956
Upper-middle income
High-income
Low/Lower-middle income
Threshold
GNI per capita (current US$)
GNI
GNI PER CAPITA
Electrification
ELECTRIFICATION
INTO THE LIGHT
Empowering rural communities through access to energy
