600 Million People Can't Turn On The Lights — Here's Why That Has to Change

More than 600 million people across Africa and the Caribbean go to sleep every night without electricity. Not because of a choice — but because the grid never reached them, the infrastructure was never built, or the systems that exist are too unreliable to count on. This is energy poverty, and it is one of the greatest injustices of our time.

What Is Energy Poverty?

Energy poverty means living without consistent, affordable access to electricity and clean cooking fuel. It means students doing homework by candlelight. It means clinics that can’t refrigerate vaccines. It means small businesses that can’t run equipment, can’t stay open after dark, can’t compete. It means women and children spend hours each day collecting firewood instead of building a life.

Energy poverty is not a distant problem. It is a daily reality for hundreds of millions of people — and it is deeply connected to every other development challenge we face.

The African and Caribbean Reality

Sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest electricity access rates in the world. According to the International Energy Agency, nearly 600 million people on the continent lack access to electricity. In rural areas, that number climbs even higher.

In the Caribbean, the challenge looks different but is just as real. Island nations face some of the highest electricity costs in the world, driven by dependence on imported fossil fuels. For low-income households, paying the power bill means sacrificing food, healthcare, or education. For many, it means going without power entirely.

Why It Matters Beyond the Lights

Access to reliable energy is not just a convenience — it is the foundation for nearly every other development goal.

Without energy, hospitals cannot operate life-saving equipment, schools cannot support digital learning, clean water cannot be pumped or purified, businesses cannot grow or create jobs, and women cannot safely move or work after dark.

The United Nations recognized this by designating Affordable and Clean Energy as one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals — SDG 7. Because without energy, the other 16 goals are almost impossible to achieve.

What ACEN Is Doing

The Africa Caribbean Energy Network (ACEN) is working to change the conversation and change the outcomes. As Co-Chair of ACEN, I have seen firsthand how policy advocacy, community organizing, and cross-regional partnerships can shift the conditions that keep energy poverty in place.

ACEN connects advocates, policymakers, and communities across Africa and the Caribbean to push for clean, affordable, accessible energy solutions. The work is not easy — but it is essential.

What You Can Do

You do not have to be a policymaker to make a difference. Awareness is the first step.

If this issue moves you, here are three starting points:

• 1. Learn more about SDG 7 and the global energy access gap.

• 2. Share this conversation with your network.

• 3. Support organizations working on the ground in energy-poor communities.

And if you want to go deeper, I wrote a guide — Energy Poverty Explained — that breaks down the causes, the consequences, and the path forward in plain language. It is a resource for advocates, students, nonprofit leaders, and anyone who wants to understand this issue and take action.

Closing

How do we solve poverty if we can’t even turn on the lights?

That question drives everything I do. I believe energy access is a human right — and I believe we have the tools, the knowledge, and the collective will to get there. We just need more people in the fight.