If the world is serious about achieving universal energy access, cutting emissions, improving public health and protecting forests, cooking must be part of the electricity conversation. Equally, electricity must be part of the clean cooking conversation.
That thinking sits behind the Global Electric Cooking Coalition (GeCCo), launched at COP28 and built on the foundations of Loughborough University's Modern Energy Cooking Services (MECS) programme. Since December 2023, GeCCo has brought together 37 organisations from across the energy, climate, health, development and finance sectors with a common goal: accelerating the transition to electric cooking across the Global South.
More importantly, GeCCo reflects a wider shift. Electric cooking is no longer viewed as a niche clean cooking solution. It is becoming an increasingly important part of national energy planning and investment.
From global commitments to national action
When GeCCo launched at COP28, electric cooking gained unprecedented visibility within the climate agenda. Backing from governments, development banks and international organisations signalled that eCooking had moved beyond pilot projects and into mainstream policy discussions.
Three years on, the debate has shifted. The question is no longer whether electric cooking works, but how quickly countries can realise the economic, environmental and social benefits it offers.
Across Africa, Asia and Latin America, governments are exploring what it would take to make electric cooking a mainstream energy service. GeCCo's readiness assessments in countries including Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Laos, Burundi, Madagascar and India's Kerala state have examined grid capacity, appliance supply chains, consumer demand, policy frameworks and opportunities for carbon finance.
These assessments are increasingly leading to action. Coalition members have supported national clean cooking strategies in 12 countries, while country action groups are helping to drive implementation in Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Ethiopia and Madagascar.
A new chapter for electricity access
One of the most significant changes in recent years has been the growing recognition that electric cooking is not a burden on electricity systems. In many cases, it can strengthen them.
Historically, electricity planning focused on lighting, communications and productive uses, while cooking was seen as too energy intensive for lower-income settings. Evidence increasingly suggests otherwise.
Electric cooking creates predictable demand, helping improve utility revenues and strengthening the case for investments in grids and mini-grids. It can stimulate appliance markets, support innovative financing models and, for many households, reduce reliance on expensive or polluting fuels.
This shift is already influencing investment decisions. The African Development Bank has incorporated electric cooking into major energy programmes, while financing models such as on-bill repayment are helping households access modern appliances without high upfront costs. Carbon finance is also helping unlock larger-scale deployment.
The lesson is simple: electricity access and clean cooking are not competing priorities. They can reinforce one another.
Why the next few years matter
Momentum is growing, but the transition remains at a crucial stage.
GeCCo's ambition is to support a mass transition to electric cooking in at least 10 countries by 2030, with electricity becoming the primary cooking fuel for more than 10% of households and institutions in each participating country.
Reaching that goal will require political leadership, coordinated investment, supportive regulation, consumer awareness and international collaboration.
Initiatives such as Mission 300, a World Bank and African Development Bank programme aiming to connect 300 million more people to electricity across Africa, create a significant opportunity. For perhaps the first time, large-scale electrification efforts and clean cooking ambitions can be designed together rather than pursued separately.
If that opportunity is seized, the benefits will reach far beyond cooking, accelerating climate action, improving health, reducing pressure on forests, strengthening electricity systems and supporting economic development.
Looking beyond 2030
As policymakers, investors and development organisations gather at COP31 in Antalya, the challenge is no longer proving that electric cooking works. The challenge is scaling it.
Success will not be measured by the number of reports published, partnerships formed or conference panels held. It will be measured by whether millions of households gain access to a cleaner, healthier and more modern way of cooking.
The foundations are in place. The task now is to turn momentum into widespread adoption.
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