A Vision Statement by Ban Ki-moon Secretary-General of the United Nations

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon argues that sustainable energy is essential to defeating poverty and combating climate change. He proposes three linked objectives for 2030: universal access to modern energy, doubling the rate of energy efficiency improvement, and doubling the share of renewable energy in the global mix. The document identifies financial, regulatory, and infrastructural barriers to this transition and calls for a global 'clean energy revolution' supported by the Sustainable Energy for All initiative.

• The goal of achieving sustainable energy for all by 2030 is based on three interconnected objectives: ensuring universal access to modern energy services, doubling the rate of improvement in energy efficiency, and doubling the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix.
• Significant energy poverty exists globally, with over 1.3 billion people lacking electricity and at least 2.7 billion lacking clean cooking facilities, with more than 95% of these populations located in developing Asia or sub-Saharan Africa.
• Universal energy access by 2030 requires an annual investment of $48 billion, which is more than five times the 2009 investment level of $9.1 billion, yet this represents only 3 percent of total global energy investment.
• The transition to sustainable energy faces several systemic barriers, including path dependence from existing infrastructure, high initial costs of clean technologies, regulatory policies that ignore external environmental and health costs, and outdated business models based on monopolies.
• Energy efficiency offers significant economic returns; the IEA estimates that every $1 spent on efficient electrical equipment and buildings avoids an average of more than $2 in energy supply investments.
• The Sustainable Energy for All initiative, supported by a High-Level Group led by Kandeh Yumkella and Charles Holliday, aims to mobilize stakeholders to create an Action Agenda and a global platform for coordinating energy access and efficiency efforts.

APA

Ki-moon, B. (2011). A Vision Statement by Ban Ki-moon Secretary-General of the United Nations. Sustainable Energy for All. https://www.seforall.org/system/files/gather-content/SG_Sustainable_Energy_for_All_vision.pdf

Chicago

Ki-moon, Ban. A Vision Statement by Ban Ki-moon Secretary-General of the United Nations. Sustainable Energy for All, 2011. https://www.seforall.org/system/files/gather-content/SG_Sustainable_Energy_for_All_vision.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Ki-moon |first1=Ban |title=A Vision Statement by Ban Ki-moon Secretary-General of the United Nations |publisher=Sustainable Energy for All |date=November 2011 |url=https://www.seforall.org/system/files/gather-content/SG_Sustainable_Energy_for_All_vision.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{kimoon2011vision, author = {Ki-moon, Ban}, title = {{A Vision Statement by Ban Ki-moon Secretary-General of the United Nations}}, publisher = {Sustainable Energy for All}, year = {2011}, month = nov, url = {https://www.seforall.org/system/files/gather-content/SG_Sustainable_Energy_for_All_vision.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }