Global access to cooling gaps in 2022

The 2022 analysis by Sustainable Energy for All identifies significant global gaps in cooling access, with 1.2 billion people at high risk and 2.47 billion at medium risk. The report highlights that the population at high risk increased by 28 million since 2021, driven by urbanization and the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly in high-impact countries.

• In 2022, 1.2 billion rural and urban poor people are at high risk due to a lack of access to cooling, marking an increase of more than 28 million people since 2021. The majority of this high-risk population, 1.17 billion, reside in high-impact countries. This growth was driven by a strong urbanization trend, which increased the number of urban poor at high risk by 24.9 million in high-impact countries, and the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which contributed to a growth of nearly 4 million rural poor at high risk (from 372.7 million to 376.6 million).
• The population at medium risk, consisting of lower-middle-income people, increased from 2.36 billion to 2.47 billion compared to the previous year. This group is described as being on the brink of purchasing the most affordable cooling devices, which could lead to a dramatic increase in emissions and energy consumption if purchasing options remain limited. The increase included 108.8 million more people in high-impact countries, while non-high-impact countries saw a decrease of 5 million.
• Within the 'Critical 9' countries—Bangladesh, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Sudan—the high-risk population grew by an average of 7 percent over the last year, with the exception of Indonesia. India and China have the highest absolute numbers of people at high risk, with almost 323 million and 159 million respectively. Mozambique and Nigeria have the highest relative shares of their populations at high risk, at 84 percent and 67 percent respectively.
• Certain African nations exhibit the most significant proportions of populations at high risk. Over 90 percent of the total population is at high risk in Guinea-Bissau and Somalia, while over 80 percent is at high risk in Angola, Benin, Liberia, and Mozambique.
• The middle-income population at low risk decreased by 76.7 million, falling from 1.44 billion to 1.36 billion in 2022, with a 75.7 million person decrease occurring in high-impact countries. Despite the low risk to the individuals, this population poses serious risks to energy and climate systems if they choose unsustainable cooling appliances.

APA

Sustainable Energy for All (2022). Global access to cooling gaps in 2022. https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2022/global-access-to-cooling-gaps

Chicago

Sustainable Energy for All. Global access to cooling gaps in 2022. 2022. https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2022/global-access-to-cooling-gaps.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Sustainable Energy for All |title=Global access to cooling gaps in 2022 |date=November 2022 |url=https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2022/global-access-to-cooling-gaps |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sustainableenergyforall2022global, author = {{Sustainable Energy for All}}, title = {{Global access to cooling gaps in 2022}}, institution = {Sustainable Energy for All}, year = {2022}, month = nov, url = {https://www.seforall.org/chilling-prospects-2022/global-access-to-cooling-gaps}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }