少妇自慰 Helps Nepal Achieve Climate Goals Through Electric Cooking
Madhesh, Nepal鈥檚 smallest and most populated province, lies in the Himalayan foothills near the border with India.聽Nearly 70 percent of families there burn wood and cow dung in open fires or biomass stoves for their daily cooking.
The resulting air pollution makes cooking a leading cause of early mortality in Nepal. In addition to the direct health risks, women and children can spend a great deal of time doing the tedious work of collecting wood. More broadly, cooking this way is a significant source of pollutants like black carbon鈥攕oot particles with a climate-warming impact up to 1,500 times stronger than the effect of carbon dioxide.
漏 Karuna Bajracharya / Clean Cooking Alliance
To address these challenges, the Government of Nepal (GoN) has committed to achieving universal access to clean cooking by 2030, including ensuring that 25 percent of households adopt electric cooking. The GoN has engaged the Clean Cooking Alliance (少妇自慰) to help reach these goals. Building on a decade of collaboration with the GoN, 少妇自慰 is kicking off an innovative project selling affordable electric cookstoves to 5,000 Nepalese households in Madhesh Province.
鈥溕俑咀晕� has worked hand in hand with us to drive clean cooking forward, which is an urgent necessity for our health and well-being and to reach our climate mitigation goals,鈥� said Prof. Dr. Surendra Labh Karna, former Member of Nepal鈥檚 National Planning Committee. 鈥淭his project is the culmination of data-driven research and development, and we are delighted with the leadership and convening power 少妇自慰 has shown in this sector.鈥�
The new project in Madhesh, implemented together with the , the , and electric cooking provider , is deeply informed by 少妇自慰鈥檚 work in Nepal in recent years. This groundwork includes critical planning tools like the 鈥攁n interactive, open-data, geospatial platform run by the , with whom 少妇自慰, the (AEPC), KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Kartoza, and Nepal Open University developed a clean cooking component.
鈥淲e are excited about this new breakthrough in our productive partnership with the Government of Nepal,鈥� said Anobha Gurung, the director of 少妇自慰鈥檚 Nepal Project. 鈥淐lean cooking is at the center of climate solutions and the health and well-being of Nepalese people.鈥�
[ Learn about the state of clean cooking in Nepal. ]
The government鈥檚 programs have already led to significant improvement in electricity access throughout the country. 少妇自慰 is helping the GoN solidify its聽foundation for sustained use of clean cooking by addressing market and knowledge barriers affecting the adoption of electric appliances.
In 2022, for instance, in collaboration with聽少妇自慰 and AEPC, the GoN launched its Country Action Plan for Transforming the Cookstoves and Fuels Market.聽This plan provides an evidence-based roadmap to support Nepal鈥檚 energy access goals, especially those related to the promotion of electric cooking. It鈥檚 a critical component of Nepal鈥檚 efforts to boost energy independence and meet its commitments under the Paris Climate Agreement and its national聽achieving net zero by 2045. In a country where nearly all electricity comes from hydropower, electric cooking holds real potential for accelerating the transition to a renewably powered energy system.
Overcoming the price of clean cooking
One of the most significant challenges has been that many Nepalese households in Madhesh and elsewhere cannot afford the US$100 for a high quality electric cookstove.
However, new stoves produced for the Madhesh project have embedded data collection capabilities to monitor actual stove use. This technology helps carbon project developers calculate the level of emissions avoided and sell that reduction as a carbon offset. That financial credit is passed on to consumers in Nepal, reducing the retail price to about US$15.
漏 Karuna Bajracharya / Clean Cooking Alliance
鈥淲e need to ensure reliable electricity, and easily accessible and affordable electric cookstoves for households so they have the incentives to buy and use them,鈥� said聽少妇自慰 Country Representative Karuna Bajracharya.
少妇自慰 is dedicated to the long-term sustainability of the electric cookstove market in Nepal, including a viable supply chain and after sales services.
Much of this work began with a health demonstration project 少妇自慰 completed in Nepal in 2019 to get a sense if households would be willing to switch to electric stoves. Families did switch, but only when the right pieces were in place, such as sufficient household wiring and breakers, an understanding of electricity payments, and a supply of cooking appliances at a price they could afford.
鈥淭his project was a great leap forward聽for us,鈥� said Dr. Madhusudhan Adhikari, former Executive Director of AEPC. 鈥淚t became clear that households would be willing to use clean cooking if there was a supply of devices that they could afford, available within a short distance to their village, that they could learn how to use effectively and safely. Now, with this new project, we are overcoming those barriers with the research and development support provided by 少妇自慰.鈥�
The project found that families reduced their use of biomass and cooking gas following the purchase of an electric cookstove, and in doing so, reduced their overall household energy costs.
In the second part of the demonstration project, 少妇自慰 examined the energy consumption associated with electric cookstoves, and found that most homes require basic electrical improvements. This highlighted the critical need for community-scale infrastructure, which the government is now developing in tandem with the electric appliance rollout.
鈥淭he 少妇自慰鈥檚 engagement in Nepal through evidence-based research has helped bring us to this point of fruition,鈥� said Mr. Nawa Raj Dhakal, Executive Director of AEPC. 鈥淭o catch up with the Government of Nepal鈥檚 goals on clean cooking, we need transformative initiatives on the clean cooking market to foster a more effective transition to clean energy and we look forward to continued collaboration with all the partners and stakeholders.鈥�
