Clean energy is reshaping countries, economies and lives faster than anyone expected.
Bangladesh has set a global record, electrifying millions of homes powered by off-grid solar, bringing electricity to rural families who waited generations for it. Denmark has shown how wind power can move from experiment to energy infrastructure backbone. The massive purchase by Pakistan of solar panels and batteries has helped the country walk away from natural gas as a strategic fuel. And the ban by Ethiopia on fossil-fuel car imports has sparked a rapid shift to electric vehicles.
These projects are proof that clean energy works at scale.
This is because clean energy now makes economic sense. Today, more than 90 per cent of new renewable power is cheaper than building new fossil fuel plants. Investors see it. Governments see it. Communities feel it. Clean energy is faster to deploy, cheaper to run and more resilient in an increasingly volatile world.
It is also creating millions of jobs. About 16.6 million people already work in clean energy worldwide, from manufacturing to installation to innovation. In 2025 alone, global investment in renewables, nuclear, grids, storage, low-emissions fuels, efficiency and electrification hit $2.2 trillion, twice the amount that flowed into oil, gas and coal. For developing economies, this shift offers a powerful opportunity to grow without locking into costly fuel imports or outdated systems.
Energy is the engine behind nearly every development goal we care about. Without reliable, affordable energy, progress on poverty, health, education, gender equality, clean water, industry and cities stalls. In fact, an analysis across the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) framework shows that energy underpins roughly two thirds of all SDG targets, with 125 of the 169 SDGs linked to energy, either directly or indirectly. This is why access to clean energy sits at the heart of the 2030 Agenda, and why getting it right accelerates progress across the board.
Nowhere is this clearer than with climate change. Energy use produces about three quarters of global greenhouse gas emissions. If we do not transform how we power our homes, factories, transport and cities, there is no credible path to a safe climate. Clean energy is quite simply the solution. Without a rapid and sustained transformation of energy systems, no credible pathway exists to achieve net-zero emissions by mid-century or to meet the temperature goals of the Paris Agreement.
There has been real progress. Nearly 92 per cent of people worldwide now have access to electricity. Clean cooking access has also grown, and currently stands at 74 per cent globally, improving health, saving lives and easing the burden on women and girls. These gains show what is possible when ambition meets action.
But the gaps remain stark and unacceptable. 666 million people still live without electricity and 2.1 billion rely on dirty fuels to cook, breathing smoke that harms their health every day. At the same time, clean energy investment remains slow and uneven. For example, Africa, which holds some of the world’s best solar resources, receives just 2 per cent of global clean energy finance. Many countries with the greatest need are still left waiting, perpetuating poverty, inequality and health risks while constraining climate action.
This carries significant economic risk. To meet global climate goals and deliver energy for all, clean energy investment must more than triple by 2030, and much of it must go to emerging and developing economies.
The good news is that momentum is building. Governments are renewing commitments. Global plans are being updated. Clean energy is firmly on the climate agenda. And 2026 will be a defining year, with a major global review of progress on energy access and sustainability.
Clean energy is one of the rare solutions that brings people together rather than pulling them apart. It cuts emissions while creating jobs. It strengthens economies while improving health and opportunity. It gives countries more control over their futures, and communities more power over their lives.
The International Day of Clean Energy, observed each year on 26 January, is a moment to recognize just how far we have come and how much further we can go. This day is our call to accelerate action, share solutions and build momentum behind a transition that is already underway.
The building blocks are in place. The technologies work. The costs are falling. And the evidence, from villages to entire nations, shows that clean energy delivers. What is needed now is the confidence to move faster and the commitment to ensure that no one is left behind.
The international community has a decisive role to play in accelerating the build-out of clean energy infrastructure, especially across the developing world, where energy demand is rising fastest and the stakes are highest.
By mobilizing concessional finance, de-risking private investment, and transferring technology and technical expertise, developing countries can undertake grid modernization, energy storage and robust renewable projects that will, in turn, expand clean energy access and strengthen economic resilience.
If we choose ambition over hesitation, partnership over fragmentation and action over delay, clean energy can become the defining success story of this decade. It can turn global promises into real progress, lighting homes, powering schools, fuelling businesses and protecting the planet we share.
A clean energy future is not only possible. It is within reach. The choices we make today, starting now, will determine whether it becomes a reality for everyone.
وقائع الأمم المتحدة ليست سجلاً رسمياً. إنها تتشرف باستضافة كبار مسؤولي الأمم المتحدة وكذلك المساهمين البارزين من خارج منظومة الأمم المتحدة الذين لا تعبر آراءهم بالضرورة عن آراء الأمم المتحدة. وبالمثل، الحدود والأسماء المعروضة والتسميات المستخدمة في الخرائط أو المقالات، لا تعني بالضرورة موافقة أو قبول من قِبل الأمم المتحدة.
