New charity Energy Aid brings power to poorer nations

A new charity is aiming to end energy poverty by bringing sustainable electricity to the world’s poorest regions. The UN estimates that 1.3 billion people currently have no access to […]

A new charity is aiming to end energy poverty by bringing sustainable electricity to the world’s poorest regions. The UN estimates that 1.3 billion people currently have no access to electricity.

Energy Aid, which is backed by consultancy IBM and UK charity Practical Aid, will give cash and resources to charities running energy projects in South America, South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.

The charity’s chief executive, Jonathan Steel (pictured), said these projects were in desperate need of extra support.

Launching the charity at last week’s Energy Awards, Mr Steel said: “Achieving universal energy access is a vital step in reducing extreme poverty, but current efforts to address the issue are too fragmented and are not changing the outlook quickly enough. Our research shows that only a fifth of projects in this space achieve their goals and there is a lack of long-term planning and investment.

“We aim to address these shortfalls, combining commercial rigour, corporate expertise and finance with best-of-class NGO experience to create a charity for the 21st century that can work with existing actors to achieve the change we need.”

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