Global access to cooling: Regional trends

This report analyzes regional trends in cooling access gaps for 2021, focusing on high-impact countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Caribbean. It highlights an overall increase in populations at highest risk—specifically the rural and urban poor—across all regions, with the COVID-19 pandemic cited as a contributing factor to rising poverty and cooling access challenges.

• In Africa, 389 million people across 31 high-impact countries are at the highest risk of lacking cooling access. This includes 174 million rural poor—representing 39 percent of Africa's total rural population and 21 percent of the continent's total population—and 215 million urban poor. The rural poor population at high risk increased by 11.4 million compared to 2020, continuing a widening gap since 2018. In 16 African countries, over 70 percent of urban populations are at high risk.
• Populations at highest risk in Asia and the Middle East grew by 28 million between 2020 and 2021, reaching 645 million people. The rural poor population in high-impact countries increased by approximately 18 million, with the most significant growth in India (13.9 million increase to 121.3 million) and Bangladesh (2 million increase to 19.3 million). The urban poor population grew by 10 million, totaling 472 million across 16 high-impact countries. In seven countries—Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Timor-Leste, and Yemen—more than 75 percent of the total population is at high or medium risk.
• In Latin America and the Caribbean, the number of people at highest risk across six high-impact countries rose from 47.6 million in 2020 to 48.8 million in 2021. The urban poor make up the vast majority of this group, increasing by 500,000 people, with the largest growth in Brazil (299,000) and Bolivia (55,000). The rural poor population at high risk grew by approximately 700,000. Conversely, the lower-middle income populations in Paraguay and the Dominican Republic declined by 12 percent and 5 percent, respectively.

APA

Sustainable Energy for All (2021). Global access to cooling: Regional trends. https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2021/global-access-to-cooling/regional-trends

Chicago

Sustainable Energy for All. Global access to cooling: Regional trends. 2021. https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2021/global-access-to-cooling/regional-trends.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Sustainable Energy for All |title=Global access to cooling: Regional trends |date=2021 |url=https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2021/global-access-to-cooling/regional-trends |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sustainableenergyforall2021global, author = {{Sustainable Energy for All}}, title = {{Global access to cooling: Regional trends}}, institution = {Sustainable Energy for All}, year = {2021}, url = {https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2021/global-access-to-cooling/regional-trends}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }