Ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and clean energy
Author: Rafael Jaen Williamson, MBA. Pax Research Center of the Americas. Panama.
Humanity’s appetite for energy dates to prehistoric times, from the sun, the burning of solid fuels (wood, crop waste, or charcoal) then with the Industrial Revolution came the staggering rise of coal, oil, natural gas, then nuclear, and now renewable energies like solar, geothermal and wind. Whether sustainable or not, every source of energy meets a real human need. However, not everyone on the planet, inhabited by more than 8 billion people, enjoys the same level of energy supply to meet their basic needs. Many people suffer from ENERGY POVERTY, the experience of households and communities that struggle with meeting their basic energy needs and are negatively affected by very low supply and of affordable, reliable, safe, and sustainable energy.
Energy moves the universe and extends to all activities of modern society. Energy is never a product for final consumption but rather an intermediate product to satisfy other needs in the production of goods and services and our everyday domestic lives. Therefore, energy is essential for social and economic development. The greater these developments the greater the demand for clean efficient energy. Hence, the degree of development achieved by a society is directly and proportionally related to the availability and use of efficient energy. However, access to economically viable sources varies from country to country.
With a growing world population, we can expect greater demand on energy supply as these people will be eager to satisfy their needs and to improve their quality of life. The lack of sustainable energy services will impact their health, and standard of life and may continue as a source of conflict. The wrong supply of fossil fuels will also affect the planet as there is a strong link between sustainable economic and social development, climate change and social vulnerability.
To realize their great potential, emerging and developing economies (EMDEs) must undertake effective investment in education, infrastructure, and technology. That is perhaps the great dilemma of modern society: ensuring access to affordable, safe, sustainable, and modern energy for all, which the UN preached in their Sustainable Development Goal number seven. Regarding affordability, the World Bank (5,2023) suggests a six-step cycle. The cycle starts with government leadership, which is translated to a supportive regulatory and policy environment, increasingly capable institutions, and instruments to minimize risks, followed by transparent and competitive project allocation, which can deliver clean energy that serves immediate imperatives, including energy security, energy affordability, and jobs. But affordability is useless without a reliable supply of energy, emphasizing that currently, around 20% of the world’s population remains without electricity and an even larger proportion suffer persistent power outages.
Thus, there is much to do to ensure universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and clean energy. This begins with open and honest communications and collaborations among all stakeholders.