NAIROBI — African countries secured $900 million in new financial commitments for clean cooking technologies during a virtual meeting convened by the International Energy Agency and Kenya on July 9, 2026. This pledge increased total commitments for clean cooking in Africa to more than $3.1 billion.

Kenyan President William Ruto, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, African Union commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy Lerato Mataboge, and International Energy Agency executive director Fatih Birol attended the meeting. Nearly 1 billion people in Africa lack access to clean cooking, and the International Energy Agency states that reliance on polluting fuels contributes to an estimated 850,000 premature deaths each year in Africa.

Chris Wright stated that access to clean cooking directly affects the lives of billions of people, particularly women and children. Wright also said, "Access to clean cooking is one of the most impactful yet overlooked challenges of our time." Kenyan President William Ruto stated that financing is the biggest obstacle to achieving universal access to clean cooking technologies in Africa. "Ambition alone is not enough. It must be backed by investment," Ruto said.

Fatih Birol stated that $740 million of the commitments announced in Paris has been deployed across 22 African countries. This amount represents about one-third of the commitments from Paris. Birol added, "The additional $900 million in commitments demonstrates growing momentum, with more expected before the next summit."

The International Energy Agency released a report indicating that governments introduced 121 new clean cooking policies across more than 30 African countries since the Paris summit. The countries with new policies account for approximately 80% of Africans without access to clean cooking. The agency is also working with the African Union to help governments strengthen national clean cooking policies.

The International Energy Agency launched a public-private Clean Cooking Security Programme. This program aims to strengthen global supply chains for cooking fuels, particularly liquefied petroleum gas. Shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz earlier in 2026 affected about 30% of globally traded liquefied petroleum gas. More than 3.4 billion people worldwide depend on liquefied petroleum gas as their primary cooking fuel. The Clean Cooking Security Programme will provide technical assistance to countries seeking to improve fuel security.