Technology

The race to fulfil Nigeria’s ambitious plans to achieve Net-Zero by 2060 has created a responsibility for government to check and ensure that anthropogenic activities are reduced to the least possible amount. A pathway to achieving this is through the adoption of clean cooking technologies by households in Nigeria.

Clean cooking refers to using purer fuels and energy-efficient modern stoves for domestic use. As of 2020, the share of the population with access to clean cooking technologies was 30.2 per cent, representing less than a quarter of the Nigerian population. Ensuring access to modern cooking solutions is vital to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7) and Nigeria’s Vision 3030 goals. Hence, there is a considerable need to accelerate clean cooking in Nigeria.

Below are some examples of clean cooking technologies as approved by the world health organization:

Liquefied Petroleum gas (LPG): LPG is a clean-burning fuel that produces fewer pollutants than traditional biomass fuels. LPG stoves provide a convenient and cleaner alternative for cooking e.g. Methane and butane.
Biogas Systems: Biogas is a renewable energy solution produced by the breakdown of organic matter, such as food or animal waste, by anaerobic bacteria in an oxygen-free environment. Biogas systems capture the Methane produced during this process and use it as a cooking fuel.
Improved cooking stoves: These are designed to burn fuel more efficiently, reducing fuel consumption and minimizing smoke emissions. They often have features like insulation, better combustion chambers, and chimneys to direct smoke outside the cooking area.
Electric rice cookers: Electric stoves or induction cooktops are powered by electricity and offer a clean and efficient cooking option. However, their widespread adoption in Nigeria may be limited due to electricity access and affordability challenges.
Ethanol stoves: Ethanol is produced from sugar plants or other biomass sources. An advantage of the technology is that ethanol provides a higher heat flux with no soot or smoke, and cooking can occur faster and pollution-free

In developing countries like Nigeria, polluting fuels like wood and charcoal is mainly used for cooking, and the gases emitted from this activity contribute to increasing carbon emissions, which contribute to air pollution—resulting in a range of respiratory diseases like asthma and lung cancer. Statistics show that household air pollution causes more than 4 million deaths every year, mostly affecting women and children who bear the brunt of household activities.

Another effect of using unclean fuels like wood and charcoal to cook is that it promotes deforestation, by cutting down of trees to make firewood, thereby, hindering progress towards climate action. Additionally, traditional cooking burdens women and children because they are primarily tasked with sourcing firewood used for traditional cooking. Also, the process can be time-consuming, limiting opportunities to pursue their personal or educational goals.

Traditional cooking methods have proved inefficient and harmful to our health, economy and planet. Thus, the adoption of clean cooking technologies is crucial. It is commendable what organizations like the Clean Cooking Alliance and Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) are doing to accelerate clean cooking in Nigeria by providing grants and championing domestic policies towards clean cooking adoption. However, there is much work to be done.

With the emergence of a new government in Nigeria, clean cooking can be adapted in several ways. This could be through providing clean cooking technologies at a subsidized and affordable rate, especially for people in local communities, providing support through incentivizing companies to produce clean cooking technologies and finally, creating awareness at all levels to educate the masses on clean cooking technologies and its benefits.