Health equity

The energy access challenge is bigger in health-care facilities serving the world’s poorest populations. An analysis published in the WHO, World Bank, IRENA & SEforALL’s Energizing Health report reveals that at least 15% of facilities in sub-Saharan Africa do not have access to electricity whatsoever. South Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean regions fare somewhat better, reporting 12% and 8% of facilities with no electricity access, respectively. In the sub-Saharan Africa region, only 40% of facilities have reliable electricity, and in the Latin America and the Caribbean region, an average of 72% of facilities have reliable electricity.

Similar inequities are evident when looking at electricity access by health-care facility attributes, including facility type (hospital versus non-hospital) and geographic location (urban versus rural). Hospitals tend to fare better than non-hospitals, such as primary health centres, in access to any electricity supply or reliable electricity supply. There is also an urban–rural divide: urban health-care facilities often report more access to any electricity and more reliable electricity access than rural facilities in the same country. Providing reliable, affordable and sustainable energy to all facilities, including those in rural and remote areas, is essential to protect the health of the most vulnerable populations.