Energy access realities in urban poor communities of developing countries: Assessments and recommendations- SPM, UPEA III

Nearly 1.3 billion people continue to remain without access to electricity and 2.6 billion do not have access to clean cooking facilities (World Energy Outlook, 2012).
There is a wide gap in terms of understanding of the existing situation of clean energy access to the urban poor, the barriers to energy access and possible solutions to address this challenge. With an objective of addressing this gap, the Global Network on Energy for Sustainable Development (GNESD) initiated research work on the theme of Urban Peri-Urban Energy Access (UPEA) in 2006 through its member centres in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
UPEA Phase III further develops the work done in previous phases by identifying the specific demand and supply side barriers to energy access, analysing urban and energy policies and recommending operational measures to address these barriers.
The study besides pointing out the key barriers has also identified potential solutions and best practices that have improved energy access in some way or the other. The Summary for Policy Makers (SPM) has been prepared with an objective of informing the policy makers about the key findings of the study including recommendations for improving energy access status of the urban poor.