– Ethiopia has unveiled a bold new strategy to transform household energy use and reduce its heavy dependence on biomass fuels through the National Clean Cooking Roadmap.
The roadmap is a 3.4 billion USD initiative aimed at improving public health, protecting the environment, and spurring economic growth.
Launched by the Ministry of Water and Energy (MoWE), the roadmap outlines plans to expand access to modern cooking technologies to 93% of the population by the end of its implementation, a major shift from the current 90% reliance on traditional fuels such as firewood, charcoal, and dung.
MoWE State Minister Eng. Sultan Wali (PhD) said the use of traditional cooking methods poses enormous challenges. “Over 100 million Ethiopians, mainly women and children, are exposed to indoor air pollution, which causes an estimated 63,000 premature deaths every year,” he noted. “The economic impact is also staggering–around 29.9 billion USD lost annually due to household air pollution.”
According to Sultan, the roadmap addresses these multifaceted issues through several approaches: wider availability of clean stoves and fuels, supportive legislation and strategies, and behavioral change campaigns to ensure community acceptance of clean technologies.
The initiative also carries substantial development and economic benefits. It is projected to create over 335,000 jobs, save 13.2 billion hours of time annually–much of it for women–and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to Ethiopia’s climate goals.
Health State Minister Dereje Duguma (MD) linked the clean cooking strategy to the broader goals of the Health Extension Program, which has played a vital role in achieving Ethiopia’s Millennium and Sustainable Development Goals (MDGs and SDGs). With over 40,000 health extension workers across the country, the Ministry aims to educate communities about the health hazards of traditional stoves and promote the shift toward cleaner alternatives.
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“Clean cooking is now part of the health agenda,” Dereje said. “We can use our health platform to bring change, improve maternal and child health, and drive behavioral transformation.”
The Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) also emphasized the environmental impact of unsustainable cooking practices. MoA State Minister Prof. Eyasu Elias said traditional fuel use contributes to deforestation, climate change, and soil degradation, undermining agricultural productivity. “We are distributing improved stoves under programs like the World Bank-supported Sustainable Land Management Project,” he said, “but demand far exceeds current supply.”
While around 50,000 households have already received clean stoves, Eyasu stressed that scaling up is critical to reversing the environmental toll and ensuring rural communities adopt more sustainable cooking practices.
The roadmap’s implementation will require multi-sectoral cooperation and significant financing. Sultan said the $3.4 billion investment includes technology distribution, consumer financing schemes, awareness campaigns, and monitoring systems.
“This is not just an energy project. It is a transformative national development agenda,” he concluded. FIKADU BELAY