This edited volume looks at energy poverty, an issue whose pivotal role in the fight for human development is only now being recognised by policymakers. Nearly one quarter of humanity still lacks access to electricity. Close to one third rely on traditional fuels like firewood and cow dung for cooking, at great cost to their health and welfare. While most prevalent in parts of Africa and Asia, energy poverty is a global problem which concerns us all. This book, whichbrings together economists, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and other practitioners from all over the world, is dedicated to a single goal: finding a solution to this haunting problem. It is part history, part economics, part political analysis, part business case review, and part field handbook. PartOne focuses on defining and measuring the problem and benchmarking progress in solving it, an obvious prerequisite to any successful energy-access policy. Part Two reviews past and current energy access programs, with an eye towards finding out what worked and what didn't and what can be replicated elsewhere. These case reviews are told as seen on the ground - China's experience by top Chinese officials and Africa's by African regulators and scholars. Based in part on those cases, the book'slast, more forward-looking section aims to present practitioners with a tool kit, a menu of options to speed up their efforts. The energy access agenda is gaining traction at a time of rising concerns about climate change and resource constraints. This book shows that bringing modern energy to thosewho lack it not just a moral imperative, but will likely benefit the world as a whole without harming the environment or unduly stretching finite resources.

Part I: Taking Stock of Energy Poverty; Antoine Halff, Benjamin Sovacool, and Jon Rozhon: Introduction: The End of Energy Poverty: Pathways to Development; 1 Fatih Birol: Achieving Energy For All Will Not Cost The Earth; 2 Benjamin Sovacool: Defining, Measuring, and Tackling Energy Poverty; 3 Douglas F. Barnes, Hussain Samad, Cesar Calderon, and Sudeshna Ghosh Banerjee: The Development Impact of Energy Access; 4 Sudeshna Ghosh Banerjee, Mikul Bhatia, Elisa Portale, Ruchi Soni, and Nicolina Angelou: The World Bank's Perspective on Energy Access; 5 Nigel Bruce and Chen Ding: Health Benefits from Energy Access in LMICs: Mechanisms, Impacts, and Policy Opportunities; 6 Kalpana Balakrishnan, Zoe Chafe, Tord Kjellstrom, Thomas E. McKone, and Kirk R. Smith: Energy Poverty and Public Health: Impacts of Solid Cookfuel; 7 Barbara C. Farhar, Beth Osnes, Elizabeth A. Lowry: Energy and Gender; 8 Morgan Bazilian, Ryan Economy, Patrick Nussbaumer, Erik Haites, Kandeh K. Yumkella, Mark Howells, Minoru Takada, Dale S. Rothman, and Michael Levi: Beyond Basic Access: The Scale of Investment Required for Universal Energy Access; 9 Allan Hoffman: Energy and Water: A Critical Linkage; Part II: Lessons Learned; 10 Wenke Han, Luo Zhihong, and Lijuan Fan: Striving Towards Development: China's Energy Poverty Alleviation Efforts; 11 Debajit Palit, Subhes C. Bhattacharyya, and Akanksha Chaurey: Indian Approaches to Energy Access; 12 Gilberto De Martino Jannuzzi and Jose Goldemberg: Modern Energy Services to Low Income Households in Brazil: Lessons Learned and Challenges Ahead; 13 Laura El-Katiri: Energy Poverty in the Middle East and North Africa; 14 Abeeku Brew-Hammond, Gifty Serwaa Mensah, and Owusu Amponsah: Energy Poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa: Poverty Amidst Abundance; 15 Doug Koplow: Global Energy Subsidies: Scale, Opportunity Costs, and Barriers to Reform; 16 Phil LaRocco: Is Small Beautiful?; Part III: Challenges and Policy Options; 17 Jason E. Bordoff: Expanding Energy Access: An Assessment of U.S. Policy; 18 Richenda Van Leeuwen and Yasemin Erboy: The Energy Access Practitioner Network; 19 Thiyagarajan Velumail, Chris Turton, and Nick Beresnev: The Energy Plus Approach: Reducing Poverty with Productive Uses of Energy; 20 Xia Zuzhang: Unlocking Financial Resources; 21 Leila Benali and Andy Barrett: Alleviating Energy Poverty in Africa: A Story of Leapfrogging, Localizing, and Fast-Tracking