name: Net ODA received (% of central government expense)

sourceOrganization: Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. IMF central government expense estimates are used for the denominator.


Developmentrelevance:
Ratio of aid to central government expense provides measures of recipient country's dependency on aid. Ratios of aid are generally much higher in Sub-Saharan Africa than in other regions, and they increased in the 1980s. High ratios are due only in part to aid flows. Many African countries saw severe erosion in their terms of trade in the 1980salong with weak policies, falling incomes, imports, and investment. Thus the increase in aid dependency ratios reflects events affecting both the numerator (aid) and the denominator (central government expense).

DAC exists to help its members coordinate their development assistance and to encourage the expansion and improve the effectiveness of the aggregate resources flowing to recipient economies. In this capacity DAC monitors the flow of all financial resources, but its main concern is official development assistance (ODA). Grants or loans to countries and territories on the DAC list of aid recipients have to meet three criteria to be counted as ODA. They are provided by official agencies, including state and local governments, or by their executive agencies. They promote economic development and welfare as the main objective. And they are provided on concessional financial terms (loans must have a grant element of at least 25 percent, calculated at a discount rate of 10 percent). The DAC Statistical Reporting Directives provide the most detailed explanation of this definition and all ODA-related rules.

DAC statistics aim to meet the needs of policy makers in the field of development co-operation, and to provide a means of assessing the comparative performance of aid donors. DAC statistics are used extensively in the Peer Reviews conducted for each DAC member every four to five years, and have a wide range of other applications. They are used to measure donors' compliance with various international recommendations in the field of development co-operation (terms, volume), and are indispensable for analysis of virtually every aspect of development and development co-operation.

From 1960 to 1990, official development assistance (ODA) flows from DAC countries to developing countries rose steadily, but then fell sharply in the 1990s. Since then, a series of high-profile international conferences have boosted ODA flows. In the mid-2000s, ODA once again rose due to exceptional debt relief operations for Iraq and Nigeria. Despite the recent financial crisis, ODA flows have continued to rise and in the early 2010s reached their highest real level ever at about US $130 billion. This demonstrates effectiveness of aid pledges, especially when they are made on the basis of adequate resources and backed by strong political will.

IndicatorName: Net ODA received (% of central government expense)

Limitationsandexceptions:
Data on ODA is for aid-receiving countries. The data cover loans and grants from DAC member countries, multilateral organizations, and non-DAC donors. They do not reflect aid given by recipient countries to other developing countries. As a result, some countries that are net donors are shown as aid recipients. The indicator does not distinguish types of aid (program, project, or food aid; emergency assistance; or post-conflict peacekeeping assistance), which may have different effects on the economy.

Ratio of aid to central government expense provides measures of recipient country's dependency on aid. But care must be taken in drawing policy conclusions. For foreign policy reasons some countries have traditionally received large amounts of aid. Thus aid dependency ratio may reveal as much about a donor's interests as about a recipient's needs.

The nominal values used here may overstate the real value of aid to recipients. Changes in international prices and exchange rates can reduce the purchasing power of aid. Tying aid, still prevalent though declining in importance, also tends to reduce its purchasing power. Tying requires recipients to purchase goods and services from the donor country or from a specified group of countries. Such arrangements prevent a recipient from misappropriating or mismanaging aid receipts, but they may also be motivated by a desire to benefit donor country suppliers.

Because the indicator relies on information from donors, it is not necessarily consistent with information recorded by recipients in the balance of payments, which often excludes all or some technical assistance - particularly payments to expatriates made directly by the donor. Similarly, grant commodity aid may not always be recorded in trade data or in the balance of payments. Moreover, DAC statistics exclude aid for military and antiterrorism purposes.

The aggregates refer to World Bank classifications of economies and therefore may differ from those of the OECD.

Longdefinition: Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).

Periodicity: Annual

Source: Development Assistance Committee of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Geographical Distribution of Financial Flows to Developing Countries, Development Co-operation Report, and International Development Statistics database. Data are available online at: www.oecd.org/dac/stats/idsonline. IMF central government expense estimates are used for the denominator.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology:
Net official development assistance (ODA) per capita consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).

Central government expense is cash payments for operating activities of the government in providing goods and services. It includes compensation of employees (such as wages and salaries), interest and subsidies, grants, social benefits, and other expenses such as rent and dividends.

The flows of official and private financial resources from the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to developing economies are compiled by DAC, based principally on reporting by DAC members using standard questionnaires issued by the DAC Secretariat.

The ODA excludes nonconcessional flows from official creditors, which are classified as "other official flows," and aid for military and anti-terrorism purposes. Transfer payments to private individuals, such as pensions, reparations, and insurance payouts, are in general not counted. In addition to financial flows, ODA includes technical cooperation, most expenditures for peacekeeping under UN mandates and assistance to refugees, contributions to multilateral institutions such as the United Nations and its specialized agencies, and concessional funding to multilateral development banks.

Flows are transfers of resources, either in cash or in the form of commodities or services measured on a cash basis. Short-term capital transactions (with one year or less maturity) are not counted. Repayments of the principal (but not interest) of ODA loans are recorded as negative flows. Proceeds from official equity investments in a developing country are reported as ODA, while proceeds from their later sale are recorded as negative flows.

The official development assistance estimates are published annually at the end of the calendar year in International Development Statistics (IDS) database. Net ODA received as a percent of central government expense is calculated using values in U.S. dollars converted using the DEC alternative conversion factor which is the underlying annual exchange rate used for the World Bank Atlas method.

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt: Official development assistance

License_Type: CC BY-4.0

Shortdefinition: Net official development assistance is disbursement flows (net of repayment of principal) that meet the DAC definition of ODA and are made to countries and territories on the DAC list of aid recipients.

value: World Development Indicators

value: Aid Effectiveness


sourceNote: Net official development assistance (ODA) consists of disbursements of loans made on concessional terms (net of repayments of principal) and grants by official agencies of the members of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC), by multilateral institutions, and by non-DAC countries to promote economic development and welfare in countries and territories in the DAC list of ODA recipients. It includes loans with a grant element of at least 25 percent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 percent).

name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)


name: Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Fragile and conflict affected situations


name: Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income)


name: Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)


name: Least developed countries: UN classification


name: Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Debt service on external debt, total (TDS, current US$)

Longdefinition: Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

Source: World Bank, International Debt Statistics.

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt: External debt: Debt service

Aggregationmethod: Sum

Dataset: International Debt Statistics

value: External Debt


Shortdefinition: Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

name: Debt service on external debt, total (TDS, current US$)

sourceOrganization: World Bank, International Debt Statistics.


sourceNote: Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF. Data are in current U.S. dollars.


name: East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)


Developmentrelevance:
External debt is that part of the total debt in a country that is owed to creditors outside the country. The debtors can be the government, corporations or private households. The debt includes money owed to private commercial banks, other governments, or international financial institutions.

External indebtedness affects a country's creditworthiness and investor perceptions. Nonreporting countries might have outstanding debt with the World Bank, other international financial institutions, or private creditors. Total debt service is contrasted with countries' ability to obtain foreign exchange through exports of goods, services, primary income, and workers' remittances.

Debt ratios are used to assess the sustainability of a country's debt service obligations, but no absolute rules determine what values are too high. Empirical analysis of developing countries' experience and debt service performance shows that debt service difficulties become increasingly likely when the present value of debt reaches 200 percent of exports. Still, what constitutes a sustainable debt burden varies by country. Countries with fast-growing economies and exports are likely to be able to sustain higher debt levels. Various indicators determine a sustainable level of external debt, including:

a) debt to GDP ratio
b) foreign debt to exports ratio
c) government debt to current fiscal revenue ratio
d) share of foreign debt
e) short-term debt
f) concessional debt in the total debt stock

IndicatorName: Total debt service (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)

Longdefinition: Total debt service to exports of goods, services and primary income. Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Data on external debt are gathered through the World Bank's Debtor Reporting System (DRS). Long term debt data are compiled using the countries report on public and publicly guaranteed borrowing on a loan-by-loan basis and private non guaranteed borrowing on an aggregate basis. These data are supplemented by information from major multilateral banks and official lending agencies in major creditor countries. Short-term debt data are gathered from the Quarterly External Debt Statistics (QEDS) database, jointly developed by the World Bank and the IMF and from creditors through the reporting systems of the Bank for International Settlements. Debt data are reported in the currency of repayment and compiled and published in U.S. dollars. End-of-period exchange rates are used for the compilation of stock figures (amount of debt outstanding), and projected debt service and annual average exchange rates are used for the flows. Exchange rates are taken from the IMF's International Financial Statistics. Debt repayable in multiple currencies, goods, or services and debt with a provision for maintenance of the value of the currency of repayment are shown at book value.

Topic: Economic Policy & Debt: External debt: Debt ratios & other items

Aggregationmethod: Weighted average

Generalcomments: The denominator for this indicator in previous versions of Global Development Finance included workers' remittances. Workers' remittances are no longer included.

value: Economy & Growth


Shortdefinition: Total debt service to exports of goods, services and primary income. Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF.

name: Total debt service (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)


sourceNote: Total debt service to exports of goods, services and primary income. Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF.


Total debt service (% of GNI)

IndicatorName: Total debt service (% of GNI)

Longdefinition: Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF.


sourceNote: Total debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term debt, interest paid on short-term debt, and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF.


IndicatorName: IMF repurchases and charges (TDS, current US$)

Longdefinition: IMF repurchases are total repayments of outstanding drawings from the General Resources Account during the year specified, excluding repayments due in the reserve tranche. IMF charges cover interest payments with respect to all uses of IMF resources, excluding those resulting from drawings in the reserve tranche. Data are in current U.S. dollars.


Shortdefinition: IMF repurchases are total repayments of outstanding drawings from the General Resources Account during the year specified, excluding repayments due in the reserve tranche. IMF charges cover interest payments with respect to all uses of IMF resources, excluding those resulting from drawings in the reserve tranche. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

name: IMF repurchases and charges (TDS, current US$)


sourceNote: IMF repurchases are total repayments of outstanding drawings from the General Resources Account during the year specified, excluding repayments due in the reserve tranche. IMF charges cover interest payments with respect to all uses of IMF resources, excluding those resulting from drawings in the reserve tranche. Data are in current U.S. dollars.


IndicatorName: Debt service to exports (%)

Longdefinition: Debt service (PPG and IMF only, % of exports of goods, services and primary income)

Source: Debt service is the sum of principle repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services. This series differs from the standard debt to exports series. It covers only long-term public and publicly guaranteed debt and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF. Exports of goods and services include primary income, but do not include workers' remittances.

Topic: World Bank, International Debt Statistics.

Shortdefinition: Debt service is the sum of principle repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services. This series differs from the standard debt to exports series. It covers only long-term public and publicly guaranteed debt and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF. Exports of goods and services include income, but do not include workers' remittances. Data for Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) are from HIPC Initiative's Status of Implementation Report.

sourceNote: Debt service, the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services, is expressed as a percentage of exports of goods and services--all transactions between residents of a country and the rest of the world involving a change of ownership from residents to nonresidents of general merchandise, net exports of goods under merchanting, nonmonetary gold, and services. This series differs from the standard debt to exports series in that it covers only long-term public and publicly guaranteed debt and repayments (repurchases and charges) to the IMF.


Aggregationmethod: World Bank, International Debt Statistics.

name: Debt service (PPG and IMF only, % of exports of goods, services and primary income)


IndicatorName: Debt service on external debt, public and publicly guaranteed (PPG) (TDS, current US$)

Longdefinition: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity. Data are in current U.S. dollars.


Shortdefinition: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

name: Debt service on external debt, public and publicly guaranteed (PPG) (TDS, current US$)


sourceNote: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity. Data are in current U.S. dollars.


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service (% of GNI)

Longdefinition: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity.


name: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service (% of GNI)

sourceNote: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity.


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)

Longdefinition: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity. Exports refer to exports of goods, services, and income.

Source: World Bank.

sourceOrganization: World Bank.


name: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service (% of exports of goods, services and primary income)

sourceNote: Public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity. Exports refer to exports of goods, services, and income.


name: Fragile and conflict affected situations


name: Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income)


name: Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Multilateral debt service (TDS, current US$)

Longdefinition: Public and publicly guaranteed multilateral loans include loans and credits from the World Bank, regional development banks, and other multilateral and intergovernmental agencies. Excluded are loans from funds administered by an international organization on behalf of a single donor government; these are classified as loans from governments. Debt service payments are the sum of principal repayments and interest payments actually made in the year specified. Data are in current U.S. dollars.


Shortdefinition: Public and publicly guaranteed multilateral loans include loans and credits from the World Bank, regional development banks, and other multilateral and intergovernmental agencies. Excluded are loans from funds administered by an international organization on behalf of a single donor government; these are classified as loans from governments. Debt service payments are the sum of principal repayments and interest payments actually made in the year specified. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

name: Multilateral debt service (TDS, current US$)


sourceNote: Public and publicly guaranteed multilateral loans include loans and credits from the World Bank, regional development banks, and other multilateral and intergovernmental agencies. Excluded are loans from funds administered by an international organization on behalf of a single donor government; these are classified as loans from governments. Debt service payments are the sum of principal repayments and interest payments actually made in the year specified. Data are in current U.S. dollars.


name: Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)


name: Least developed countries: UN classification


name: Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)


name: East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Multilateral debt service (% of public and publicly guaranteed debt service)

Longdefinition: Multilateral debt service is the repayment of principal and interest to the World Bank, regional development banks, and other multilateral agencies. public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity.


name: Multilateral debt service (% of public and publicly guaranteed debt service)

sourceNote: Multilateral debt service is the repayment of principal and interest to the World Bank, regional development banks, and other multilateral agencies. public and publicly guaranteed debt service is the sum of principal repayments and interest actually paid in currency, goods, or services on long-term obligations of public debtors and long-term private obligations guaranteed by a public entity.


Shortdefinition: Multilateral debt service is the repayment of principal and interest to the World Bank, regional development banks, and other multilateral agencies.


IndicatorName: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, rural (% of rural population)

Longdefinition: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, rural is the proportion of rural population primarily using clean cooking fuels and technologies for cooking. Under WHO guidelines, kerosene is excluded from clean cooking fuels.

Source: IEA, IRENA, UNSD, World Bank, WHO. 2023. Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report. World Bank, Washington DC. © World Bank. License: Creative Commons Attribution—NonCommercial 3.0 IGO (CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO).

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Data for access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking are based on the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Household Energy Database. They are collected among different sources: only data from nationally representative household surveys (including national censuses) were used. Survey sources include Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) and Living Standards Measurement Surveys (LSMS), Multi-Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS), the World Health Survey (WHS), other nationally developed and implemented surveys, and various government agencies (for example, ministries of energy and utilities). Trends in the proportion of the population using each fuel type are estimated using a single multivariate hierarchical model, with urban and rural disaggregation. Estimates for overall ‘polluting’ fuels (unprocessed biomass, charcoal, coal, and kerosene) and ‘clean’ fuels (gaseous fuels, electricity, as well as an aggregation of any other clean fuels like alcohol) are produced by aggregating estimates of relevant fuel types. The model was used to derive clean fuel use estimates for 191 countries (ref. Stoner, O., Shaddick, G., Economou, T., Gumy, S., Lewis, J., Lucio, I., Ruggeri, G. and Adair-Rohani, H. (2020), Global household energy model: a multivariate hierarchical approach to estimating trends in the use of polluting and clean fuels for cooking. J. R. Stat. Soc. C, 69: 815-839). Countries classified by the World Bank as high income (57 countries) in the 2022 fiscal year are assumed to have universal access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking.

Topic: Environment: Energy production & use

value: Environment


name: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, rural (% of rural population)

sourceNote: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, rural is the proportion of rural population primarily using clean cooking fuels and technologies for cooking. Under WHO guidelines, kerosene is excluded from clean cooking fuels.

sourceOrganization: IEA, IRENA, UNSD, World Bank, WHO. 2023. Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report. World Bank, Washington DC. © World Bank. License: Creative Commons Attribution—NonCommercial 3.0 IGO (CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO).


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, urban (% of urban population)

Longdefinition: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, urban is the proportion of urban population primarily using clean cooking fuels and technologies for cooking. Under WHO guidelines, kerosene is excluded from clean cooking fuels.


name: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, urban (% of urban population)

sourceNote: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, urban is the proportion of urban population primarily using clean cooking fuels and technologies for cooking. Under WHO guidelines, kerosene is excluded from clean cooking fuels.


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking  (% of population)

Longdefinition: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking is the proportion of total population primarily using clean cooking fuels and technologies for cooking. Under WHO guidelines, kerosene is excluded from clean cooking fuels.


name: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking (% of population)

sourceNote: Access to clean fuels and technologies for cooking is the proportion of total population primarily using clean cooking fuels and technologies for cooking. Under WHO guidelines, kerosene is excluded from clean cooking fuels.


name: Fragile and conflict affected situations


name: Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Energy intensity level of primary energy (MJ/$2017 PPP GDP)

Limitationsandexceptions: Energy intensity level is only an imperfect proxy to energy efficiency indicator and it can be affected by a number of factors not necessarily linked to pure efficiency such as climate.

Longdefinition: Energy intensity level of primary energy is the ratio between energy supply and gross domestic product measured at purchasing power parity. Energy intensity is an indication of how much energy is used to produce one unit of economic output. Lower ratio indicates that less energy is used to produce one unit of output.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: This indicator is obtained by dividing total primary energy supply over gross domestic product measured in constant 2017 US dollars at purchasing power parity.

value: Energy & Mining

name: Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)


name: Energy intensity level of primary energy (MJ/$2017 PPP GDP)

sourceNote: Energy intensity level of primary energy is the ratio between energy supply and gross domestic product measured at purchasing power parity. Energy intensity is an indication of how much energy is used to produce one unit of economic output. Lower ratio indicates that less energy is used to produce one unit of output.


name: Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)


name: Least developed countries: UN classification


name: Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)


name: East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Access to electricity, rural (% of rural population)

Longdefinition: Access to electricity, rural is the percentage of rural population with access to electricity.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: The World Bank’s Global Electrification Database (GED) compiles nationally representative household survey data, and occasionally census data, from sources going back as far as 1990. The database also incorporates data from the Socio-Economic Database for Latin America and the Caribbean (SEDLAC), Middle East and North Africa Poverty Database (MNAPOV) and the Europe and Central Asia Poverty Database (ECAPOV), which are based on similar surveys. At the time of this analysis, the GED contained 1,375 surveys for 149 countries in 1990-2021.

value: Agriculture & Rural Development


name: Access to electricity, rural (% of rural population)

sourceNote: Access to electricity, rural is the percentage of rural population with access to electricity.


IndicatorName: Access to electricity, urban (% of urban population)

Longdefinition: Access to electricity, urban is the percentage of urban population with access to electricity.

value: Urban Development


name: Access to electricity, urban (% of urban population)

sourceNote: Access to electricity, urban is the percentage of urban population with access to electricity.


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


Access to electricity (% of population)

Developmentrelevance:
Maintaining reliable and secure electricity services while seeking to rapidly decarbonize power systems is a key challenge for countries throughout the world. More and more countries are becoming increasing dependent on reliable and secure electricity supplies to underpin economic growth and community prosperity. This reliance is set to grow as more efficient and less carbon intensive forms of power are developed and deployed to help decarbonize economies.

Energy is necessary for creating the conditions for economic growth. It is impossible to operate a factory, run a shop, grow crops or deliver goods to consumers without using some form of energy. Access to electricity is particularly crucial to human development as electricity is, in practice, indispensable for certain basic activities, such as lighting, refrigeration and the running of household appliances, and cannot easily be replaced by other forms of energy. Individuals' access to electricity is one of the most clear and un-distorted indication of a country's energy poverty status.

Electricity access is increasingly at the forefront of governments' preoccupations, especially in the developing countries. As a consequence, a lot of rural electrification programs and national electrification agencies have been created in these countries to monitor more accurately the needs and the status of rural development and electrification.

Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas.

IndicatorName: Access to electricity (% of population)

Longdefinition: Access to electricity is the percentage of population with access to electricity. Electrification data are collected from industry, national surveys and international sources.

value: Climate Change


sourceNote: Access to electricity is the percentage of population with access to electricity. Electrification data are collected from industry, national surveys and international sources.


Developmentrelevance:
Since the beginning of the 21st century, coal has been the fastest-growing global energy source; it currently provides about 40 percent of the world's electricity needs. Coal is the second source of primary energy in the world after oil, and the first source of electricity generation.. The last decade's growth in coal use has been driven by the economic growth of developing economies, mainly China. Irrespective of its economic benefits for the countries, the environmental impact of coal use, especially that coming from carbon dioxide emissions, is significant, and efforts are underway globally to build more efficient plants, to retrofit old plants and to decommission the oldest and least efficient coal plants.

Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas.

Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products.

IndicatorName: Electricity production from coal sources (% of total)

Limitationsandexceptions: IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes. For example, the IEA has constructed historical energy statistics for countries of the former Soviet Union. In addition, energy statistics for other countries have undergone continuous changes in coverage or methodology in recent years as more detailed energy accounts have become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable.

Longdefinition: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Coal refers to all coal and brown coal, both primary (including hard coal and lignite-brown coal) and derived fuels (including patent fuel, coke oven coke, gas coke, coke oven gas, and blast furnace gas). Peat is also included in this category.

Source: IEA Statistics © OECD/IEA 2014 (https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics), subject to https://www.iea.org/terms/

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Electricity production is total number of kWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.

License_Type: Use and distribution of these data are subject to IEA terms and conditions.

Generalcomments: Electricity production shares may not sum to 100 percent because other sources of generated electricity (such as geothermal, solar, and wind) are not shown. Restricted use: Please contact the International Energy Agency for third-party use of these data.

value: Infrastructure


name: Electricity production from coal sources (% of total)

sourceNote: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Coal refers to all coal and brown coal, both primary (including hard coal and lignite-brown coal) and derived fuels (including patent fuel, coke oven coke, gas coke, coke oven gas, and blast furnace gas). Peat is also included in this category.

sourceOrganization: IEA Statistics © OECD/IEA 2014 (https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics), subject to https://www.iea.org/terms/


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: Electricity production from oil, gas and coal sources (% of total)

Longdefinition: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Oil refers to crude oil and petroleum products. Gas refers to natural gas but excludes natural gas liquids. Coal refers to all coal and brown coal, both primary (including hard coal and lignite-brown coal) and derived fuels (including patent fuel, coke oven coke, gas coke, coke oven gas, and blast furnace gas). Peat is also included in this category.

Generalcomments: Restricted use: Please contact the International Energy Agency for third-party use of these data.


name: Electricity production from oil, gas and coal sources (% of total)

sourceNote: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Oil refers to crude oil and petroleum products. Gas refers to natural gas but excludes natural gas liquids. Coal refers to all coal and brown coal, both primary (including hard coal and lignite-brown coal) and derived fuels (including patent fuel, coke oven coke, gas coke, coke oven gas, and blast furnace gas). Peat is also included in this category.


name: Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)


Developmentrelevance:
Electrical energy from hydropower is derived from turbines being driven by flowing water in rivers, with or without man-made dams forming reservoirs. Presently, hydropower is the world's largest source of renewable electricity. Hydropower represents the largest share of renewable electricity production. It was second only to wind power for new-built capacities between 2005 and 2010. IEA estimates that hydropower could produce up to 6,000 terawatt-hours in 2050, roughly twice as much as today.

Hydropower's storage capacity and fast response characteristics are especially valuable to meet sudden fluctuations in electricity demand and to match supply from less flexible electricity sources and variable renewable sources, such as solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power.

Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas.

Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products.

IndicatorName: Electricity production from hydroelectric sources (% of total)

Longdefinition: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Hydropower refers to electricity produced by hydroelectric power plants.


name: Electricity production from hydroelectric sources (% of total)

sourceNote: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Hydropower refers to electricity produced by hydroelectric power plants.


name: Fragile and conflict affected situations


name: Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income)


Developmentrelevance:
An economy's production and consumption of electricity are basic indicators of its size and level of development. Although a few countries export electric power, most production is for domestic consumption. Expanding the supply of electricity to meet the growing demand of increasingly urbanized and industrialized economies without incurring unacceptable social, economic, and environmental costs is one of the great challenges facing developing countries.

Modern societies are becoming increasing dependent on reliable and secure electricity supplies to underpin economic growth and community prosperity. This reliance is set to grow as more efficient and less carbon intensive forms of power are developed and deployed to help decarbonize economies. Maintaining reliable and secure electricity services while seeking to rapidly decarbonize power systems is a key challenge for countries throughout the world.

In developing economies growth in energy use is closely related to growth in the modern sectors - industry, motorized transport, and urban areas - but energy use also reflects climatic, geographic, and economic factors (such as the relative price of energy). Energy use has been growing rapidly in low- and middle-income economies, but high-income economies still use almost five times as much energy on a per capita basis.

Governments in many countries are increasingly aware of the urgent need to make better use of the world's energy resources. Improved energy efficiency is often the most economic and readily available means of improving energy security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

IndicatorName: Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output)

Limitationsandexceptions: Electricity consumption is equivalent to production less power plants' own use and transmission, distribution, and transformation losses less exports plus imports. It includes consumption by auxiliary stations, losses in transformers that are considered integral parts of those stations, and electricity produced by pumping installations. Where data are available, it covers electricity generated by primary sources of energy - coal, oil, gas, nuclear, hydro, geothermal, wind, tide and wave, and combustible renewables. Neither production nor consumption data capture the reliability of supplies, including breakdowns, load factors, and frequency of outages.

Longdefinition: Electric power transmission and distribution losses include losses in transmission between sources of supply and points of distribution and in the distribution to consumers, including pilferage.

Source: IEA Statistics © OECD/IEA 2018 (https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics), subject to https://www.iea.org/terms/

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Data on electric power production and consumption are collected from national energy agencies by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and adjusted by the IEA to meet international definitions. Electric power transmission and distribution losses percentage of output is the share of electric power transmission and distribution losses to electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants.


name: Electric power transmission and distribution losses (% of output)

sourceNote: Electric power transmission and distribution losses include losses in transmission between sources of supply and points of distribution and in the distribution to consumers, including pilferage.

sourceOrganization: IEA Statistics © OECD/IEA 2018 (https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics), subject to https://www.iea.org/terms/


name: Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)


name: Least developed countries: UN classification


name: Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)


name: East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)


name: Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)


Developmentrelevance:
Natural gas is considered a good source of electricity supply for a number of economic, operational and environmental reasons, such as:

1) it is technically and financially of low-risk;
2) lower carbon relative to other fossil fuels;
3) gas plants can be built relatively quickly in around two years, unlike nuclear facilities, which can take much longer.

Also, gas plants are flexible both in technical and economic terms, so they can react quickly to demand peaks, and are ideally twinned with intermittent renewable options such as wind power.

Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas.

Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products.

Longdefinition: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Gas refers to natural gas but excludes natural gas liquids.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Electricity production from natural gas sources (% of total) is the share of natutal gas, which is natural gas but not natural gas liquids, in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.


IndicatorName: Electricity production from natural gas sources (% of total)

sourceNote: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Gas refers to natural gas but excludes natural gas liquids.


name: Electricity production from natural gas sources (% of total)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


Developmentrelevance:
The generation of electricity using nuclear energy was first demonstrated in the 1950s, and the first commercial nuclear power plants entered operation in the early 1960s. Nuclear capacity grew rapidly in the 1970s and 1980s as countries sought to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, especially after the oil crises of the 1970s. There was a renewed interest in nuclear energy from 2000, and 60 new countries expressed interest in launching a nuclear program to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). However, after the earthquake and tsunami devastation of the Pacific coast of northern Japan, most nuclear countries announced safety reviews of their nuclear reactors (stress tests) and the revision/improvement of their plans to address similar emergency situations; countries such as Germany and Italy decided to eventually phase out nuclear power or to abandon their nuclear plant projects.

Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas.

Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products.

Longdefinition: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Nuclear power refers to electricity produced by nuclear power plants.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total) is the share of electricity produced by nuclear power plants in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.


IndicatorName: Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)

sourceNote: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Nuclear power refers to electricity produced by nuclear power plants.


name: Electricity production from nuclear sources (% of total)


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


Developmentrelevance:
Oil includes crude oil, condensates, natural gas liquids, refinery feedstocks and additives, other hydrocarbons (including emulsified oils, synthetic crude oil, mineral oils extracted from bituminous minerals such as oil shale, and bituminous sand) and petroleum products (refinery gas, ethane, LPG, aviation gasoline, motor gasoline, jet fuels, kerosene, gas/diesel oil, heavy fuel oil, naphtha, white spirit, lubricants, bitumen, paraffin waxes and petroleum coke).

Use of energy is important in improving people's standard of living. But electricity generation also can damage the environment. Whether such damage occurs depends largely on how electricity is generated. For example, burning coal releases twice as much carbon dioxide - a major contributor to global warming - as does burning an equivalent amount of natural gas.

Anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions result primarily from fossil fuel combustion and cement manufacturing. In combustion different fossil fuels release different amounts of carbon dioxide for the same level of energy use: oil releases about 50 percent more carbon dioxide than natural gas, and coal releases about twice as much. Nuclear energy does not generate carbon dioxide emissions, but it produces other dangerous waste products.

Limitationsandexceptions:
IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes. For example, the IEA has constructed historical energy statistics for countries of the former Soviet Union. In addition, energy statistics for other countries have undergone continuous changes in coverage or methodology in recent years as more detailed energy accounts have become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable.

Data on access to electricity are collected by the IEA from industry, national surveys, and international sources.

Longdefinition: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Oil refers to crude oil and petroleum products.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Electricity production from oil sources (% of total) is the share of electricity produced by oil and petroleum products in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.


IndicatorName: Electricity production from oil sources (% of total)

sourceNote: Sources of electricity refer to the inputs used to generate electricity. Oil refers to crude oil and petroleum products.


name: Electricity production from oil sources (% of total)


name: Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: Renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output)

Longdefinition: Renewable electricity is the share of electrity generated by renewable power plants in total electricity generated by all types of plants.


name: Renewable electricity output (% of total electricity output)

sourceNote: Renewable electricity is the share of electrity generated by renewable power plants in total electricity generated by all types of plants.


name: Fragile and conflict affected situations


name: Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding hydroelectric (kWh)

Longdefinition: Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding hydroelectric, includes geothermal, solar, tides, wind, biomass, and biofuels.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Electricity production from renewable sources (% of total) is the share of electricity produced by geothermal, solar photovoltaic, solar thermal, tide, wind, industrial waste, municipal waste, primary solid biofuels, biogases, biogasoline, biodiesels, other liquid biofuels, nonspecified primary biofuels and waste, and charcoal in total electricity production which is the total number of GWh generated by power plants separated into electricity plants and CHP plants. Hydropower is excluded. The International Energy Agency (IEA) compiles data on energy inputs used to generate electricity. IEA data for countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. In addition, estimates are sometimes made to complete major aggregates from which key data are missing, and adjustments are made to compensate for differences in definitions. The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts.


name: Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding hydroelectric (kWh)

sourceNote: Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding hydroelectric, includes geothermal, solar, tides, wind, biomass, and biofuels.


name: Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)


name: Least developed countries: UN classification


name: Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)


name: East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding hydroelectric (% of total)


name: Electricity production from renewable sources, excluding hydroelectric (% of total)


name: Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Renewable energy consumption (% of total final energy consumption)

Longdefinition: Renewable energy consumption is the share of renewables energy in total final energy consumption.


name: Renewable energy consumption (% of total final energy consumption)

sourceNote: Renewable energy consumption is the share of renewables energy in total final energy consumption.


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: GDP per unit of energy use (PPP $ per kg of oil equivalent)

Longdefinition: GDP per unit of energy use is the PPP GDP per kilogram of oil equivalent of energy use. PPP GDP is gross domestic product converted to current international dollars using purchasing power parity rates based on the 2017 ICP round. An international dollar has the same purchasing power over GDP as a U.S. dollar has in the United States.


name: GDP per unit of energy use (PPP $ per kg of oil equivalent)

sourceNote: GDP per unit of energy use is the PPP GDP per kilogram of oil equivalent of energy use. PPP GDP is gross domestic product converted to current international dollars using purchasing power parity rates based on the 2017 ICP round. An international dollar has the same purchasing power over GDP as a U.S. dollar has in the United States.


name: Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)


Developmentrelevance:
In developing economies growth in energy use is closely related to growth in the modern sectors - industry, motorized transport, and urban areas - but energy use also reflects climatic, geographic, and economic factors (such as the relative price of energy). Energy use has been growing rapidly in low- and middle-income economies, but high-income economies still use almost five times as much energy on a per capita basis.

Fossil fuels are non-renewable resources because they take millions of years to form, and reserves are being depleted much faster than new ones are being made. In developing economies growth in energy use is closely related to growth in the modern sectors - industry, motorized transport, and urban areas - but energy use also reflects climatic, geographic, and economic factors (such as the relative price of energy). Energy use has been growing rapidly in low- and middle-income economies, but high-income economies still use almost five times as much energy on a per capita basis.

IndicatorName: GDP per unit of energy use (constant 2021 PPP $ per kg of oil equivalent)

Limitationsandexceptions: The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts. The IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes, and energy statistics undergo continual changes in coverage or methodology as more detailed energy accounts become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable.

Longdefinition: GDP per unit of energy use is the PPP GDP per kilogram of oil equivalent of energy use. PPP GDP is gross domestic product converted to 2021 constant international dollars using purchasing power parity rates. An international dollar has the same purchasing power over GDP as a U.S. dollar has in the United States.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: The ratio of gross domestic product (GDP) to energy use indicates energy efficiency. To produce comparable and consistent estimates of real GDP across economies relative to physical inputs to GDP - that is, units of energy use - GDP is converted to 2021 international dollars using purchasing power parity (PPP) rates. Differences in this ratio over time and across economies reflect structural changes in an economy, changes in sectoral energy efficiency, and differences in fuel mixes. Total energy use refers to the use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels (such as electricity and refined petroleum products). It includes energy from combustible renewables and waste - solid biomass and animal products, gas and liquid from biomass, and industrial and municipal waste. Biomass is any plant matter used directly as fuel or converted into fuel, heat, or electricity. Energy data are compiled by the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA data for economies that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. GDP data are from World Bank's national accounts files.


name: GDP per unit of energy use (constant 2021 PPP $ per kg of oil equivalent)

sourceNote: GDP per unit of energy use is the PPP GDP per kilogram of oil equivalent of energy use. PPP GDP is gross domestic product converted to 2021 constant international dollars using purchasing power parity rates. An international dollar has the same purchasing power over GDP as a U.S. dollar has in the United States.


name: Fragile and conflict affected situations


name: Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income)


Energy imports, net (% of energy use)

Developmentrelevance:
Modern energy services are crucial to a country's economic development. Access to modern energy is essential for the provision of clean water, sanitation and healthcare and for the provision of reliable and efficient lighting, heating, cooking, mechanical power, and transport and telecommunications services.

Governments in many countries are increasingly aware of the urgent need to make better use of the world's energy resources. Improved energy efficiency is often the most economic and readily available means of improving energy security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

IndicatorName: Energy imports, net (% of energy use)

Longdefinition: Net energy imports are estimated as energy use less production, both measured in oil equivalents. A negative value indicates that the country is a net exporter. Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology:
Energy data are compiled by the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA data for economies that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments.

A negative value in energy imports indicates that the country is a net exporter. Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport.

value: Trade


sourceNote: Net energy imports are estimated as energy use less production, both measured in oil equivalents. A negative value indicates that the country is a net exporter. Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport.


Developmentrelevance:
Alternative energy is produced without the undesirable consequences of the burning of fossil fuels, such as high carbon dioxide emissions, which is considered to be the major contributing factor of global warming.

Past few decade have seen a rise in global investment in renewable energy, led by wind and solar. In transport, major car companies are adding hybrid and full-electric vehicles to their product lines and many governments have launched plans to encourage consumers to buy these vehicles Fossil fuels continue to outpace alternative and renewable energy growth. Coal has been the fastest-growing global energy source, meeting about one-half of new electricity demand.

Total energy use refers to the use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels (such as electricity and refined petroleum products). It includes energy from combustible renewables and waste - solid biomass and animal products, gas and liquid from biomass, and industrial and municipal waste. Biomass is any plant matter used directly as fuel or converted into fuel, heat, or electricity.

Governments in many countries are increasingly aware of the urgent need to make better use of the world's energy resources. Improved energy efficiency is often the most economic and readily available means of improving energy security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

IndicatorName: Alternative and nuclear energy (% of total energy use)

Longdefinition: Clean energy is noncarbohydrate energy that does not produce carbon dioxide when generated. It includes hydropower and nuclear, geothermal, and solar power, among others.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Energy data are compiled by the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA data for economies that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments.


name: Alternative and nuclear energy (% of total energy use)

sourceNote: Clean energy is noncarbohydrate energy that does not produce carbon dioxide when generated. It includes hydropower and nuclear, geothermal, and solar power, among others.


name: Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)


name: Least developed countries: UN classification


name: Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)


Developmentrelevance:
Fossil fuels are non-renewable resources because they take millions of years to form, and reserves are being depleted much faster than new ones are being made. In developing economies growth in energy use is closely related to growth in the modern sectors - industry, motorized transport, and urban areas - but energy use also reflects climatic, geographic, and economic factors (such as the relative price of energy). Energy use has been growing rapidly in low- and middle-income economies, but high-income economies still use almost five times as much energy on a per capita basis.

Total energy use refers to the use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels (such as electricity and refined petroleum products). It includes energy from combustible renewables and waste - solid biomass and animal products, gas and liquid from biomass, and industrial and municipal waste. Biomass is any plant matter used directly as fuel or converted into fuel, heat, or electricity.

IndicatorName: Fossil fuel energy consumption (% of total)

Longdefinition: Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology:
Energy data are compiled by the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA data for economies that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments.

Data for combustible renewables and waste are often based on small surveys or other incomplete information and thus give only a broad impression of developments and are not strictly comparable across countries. The IEA reports include country notes that explain some of these differences. All forms of energy - primary energy and primary electricity - are converted into oil equivalents. A notional thermal efficiency of 33 percent is assumed for converting nuclear electricity into oil equivalents and 100 percent efficiency for converting hydroelectric power.


name: Fossil fuel energy consumption (% of total)

sourceNote: Fossil fuel comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.


name: East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)


IndicatorName: Energy use (kg of oil equivalent) per $1,000 GDP (constant 2021 PPP)

Longdefinition: Energy use per PPP GDP is the kilogram of oil equivalent of energy use per constant PPP GDP. Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport. PPP GDP is gross domestic product converted to 2021 constant international dollars using purchasing power parity rates. An international dollar has the same purchasing power over GDP as a U.S. dollar has in the United States.

name: Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)


name: Energy use (kg of oil equivalent) per $1,000 GDP (constant 2021 PPP)

sourceNote: Energy use per PPP GDP is the kilogram of oil equivalent of energy use per constant PPP GDP. Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport. PPP GDP is gross domestic product converted to 2021 constant international dollars using purchasing power parity rates. An international dollar has the same purchasing power over GDP as a U.S. dollar has in the United States.


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


Developmentrelevance:
Total energy use refers to the use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels (such as electricity and refined petroleum products). It includes energy from combustible renewables and waste - solid biomass and animal products, gas and liquid from biomass, and industrial and municipal waste. Biomass is any plant matter used directly as fuel or converted into fuel, heat, or electricity.

Renewable energy is derived from natural processes (e.g. sunlight and wind) that are replenished at a higher rate than they are consumed. Solar, wind, geothermal, hydro, and biomass are common sources of renewable energy. Majority of renewable energy in the world is from solid biofuels and hydroelectricity.

Renewable sources of energy have been the driver of much of the growth in the global clean energy sector in the past few decades. Recent years have seen a major scale-up of wind and solar photovoltaic (PV) technologies. Other renewable technologies - including hydropower, geothermal and biomass - continued to grow from a strong established base, adding hundreds of gigawatts of new capacity worldwide.

Governments in many countries are increasingly aware of the urgent need to make better use of the world's energy resources. Improved energy efficiency is often the most economic and readily available means of improving energy security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

IndicatorName: Combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy)

Longdefinition: Combustible renewables and waste comprise solid biomass, liquid biomass, biogas, industrial waste, and municipal waste, measured as a percentage of total energy use.


name: Combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy)

sourceNote: Combustible renewables and waste comprise solid biomass, liquid biomass, biogas, industrial waste, and municipal waste, measured as a percentage of total energy use.


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: Electric power consumption (kWh per capita)

Limitationsandexceptions:
Data on electric power production and consumption are collected from national energy agencies by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and adjusted by the IEA to meet international definitions. Data are reported as net consumption as opposed to gross consumption. Net consumption excludes the energy consumed by the generating units. For all countries except the United States, total electric power consumption is equal total net electricity generation plus electricity imports minus electricity exports minus electricity distribution losses.

The IEA makes these estimates in consultation with national statistical offices, oil companies, electric utilities, and national energy experts. The IEA occasionally revises its time series to reflect political changes, and energy statistics undergo continual changes in coverage or methodology as more detailed energy accounts become available. Breaks in series are therefore unavoidable.

Longdefinition: Electric power consumption measures the production of power plants and combined heat and power plants less transmission, distribution, and transformation losses and own use by heat and power plants.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: Electric power consumption per capita (kWh ) is the production of power plants and combined heat and power plants less transmission, distribution, and transformation losses and own use by heat and power plants, divided by midyear population. Energy data are compiled by the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA data for economies that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments. Electricity consumption is equivalent to production less power plants' own use and transmission, distribution, and transformation losses less exports plus imports. It includes consumption by auxiliary stations, losses in transformers that are considered integral parts of those stations, and electricity produced by pumping installations. Where data are available, it covers electricity generated by primary sources of energy - coal, oil, gas, nuclear, hydro, geothermal, wind, tide and wave, and combustible renewables. Neither production nor consumption data capture the reliability of supplies, including breakdowns, load factors, and frequency of outages.


name: Electric power consumption (kWh per capita)

sourceNote: Electric power consumption measures the production of power plants and combined heat and power plants less transmission, distribution, and transformation losses and own use by heat and power plants.


name: Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Latin America & the Caribbean (IDA & IBRD countries)


Developmentrelevance:
In developing economies growth in energy use is closely related to growth in the modern sectors - industry, motorized transport, and urban areas - but energy use also reflects climatic, geographic, and economic factors (such as the relative price of energy). Energy use has been growing rapidly in low- and middle-income economies, but high-income economies still use almost five times as much energy on a per capita basis.

Governments in many countries are increasingly aware of the urgent need to make better use of the world's energy resources. Improved energy efficiency is often the most economic and readily available means of improving energy security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

IndicatorName: Energy use (kg of oil equivalent per capita)

Longdefinition: Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology:
Total energy use refers to the use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels (such as electricity and refined petroleum products). It includes energy from combustible renewables and waste - solid biomass and animal products, gas and liquid from biomass, and industrial and municipal waste. Biomass is any plant matter used directly as fuel or converted into fuel, heat, or electricity. World Bank population estimates are used to calculate per capita data.

Energy data are compiled by the International Energy Agency (IEA). IEA data for economies that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are based on national energy data adjusted to conform to annual questionnaires completed by OECD member governments.

Data for combustible renewables and waste are often based on small surveys or other incomplete information and thus give only a broad impression of developments and are not strictly comparable across countries. The IEA reports include country notes that explain some of these differences. All forms of energy - primary energy and primary electricity - are converted into oil equivalents. A notional thermal efficiency of 33 percent is assumed for converting nuclear electricity into oil equivalents and 100 percent efficiency for converting hydroelectric power.


name: Energy use (kg of oil equivalent per capita)

sourceNote: Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport.


name: Fragile and conflict affected situations


name: Middle East & North Africa (excluding high income)


name: Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income)


name: Least developed countries: UN classification


name: Middle East & North Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (excluding high income)


Developmentrelevance: Air pollution places a major burden on world health. In many places, including cities but also in rural areas, exposure to air pollution is the main environmental threat to health, responsible for 6.5 million deaths per year, about one every 5 seconds. Around 40 percent of the world’s people rely on household burning of wood, charcoal, dung, crop waste, or coal to meet basic energy needs. Cooking and heating with solid fuels create harmful smoke and particles that fill homes and the surrounding environment. Household air pollution from cooking and heating with solid fuels is responsible for 2.9 million deaths a year. Long-term exposure to high levels of fine particles in the air contributes to a range of health effects, including respiratory diseases, lung cancer, and heart disease, resulting in 4.2 million deaths annually. Not only does exposure to air pollution affect the health of the world’s people, it also carries huge economic costs and represents a drag on development, particularly for low and middle income countries and vulnerable segments of the population such as children and the elderly.

IndicatorName: PM2.5 air pollution, mean annual exposure (micrograms per cubic meter)

Limitationsandexceptions: Pollutant concentrations are sensitive to local conditions, and even monitoring sites in the same city may register different levels. Direct monitoring of PM2.5 is still rare in most parts of the world, and measurement protocols and standards are not the same for all countries. These data should be considered only a general indication of air quality, intended to inform cross-country comparisons of the health risks due to particulate matter pollution. The guideline set by the World Health Organization (WHO) for PM2.5 is that annual mean concentrations should not exceed 10 micrograms per cubic meter, representing the lower range over which adverse health effects have been observed. The WHO has also recommended guideline values for emissions of PM2.5 from burning fuels in households.

Longdefinition: Population-weighted exposure to ambient PM2.5 pollution is defined as the average level of exposure of a nation's population to concentrations of suspended particles measuring less than 2.5 microns in aerodynamic diameter, which are capable of penetrating deep into the respiratory tract and causing severe health damage. Exposure is calculated by weighting mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 by population in both urban and rural areas.

Source: Global Burden of Disease Collaborative Network. 2021. Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD 2019) Air Pollution Exposure Estimates 1990-2019. Seattle, United States of America: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). https://doi.org/10.6069/70JS-NC54

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: A. van Donkelaar, R.V. Martin, M. Brauer, N.C. Hsu, R.A. Kahn, R.C. Levy, A. Lyapustin, A.M. Sayer, D.M. Winker, "Global Estimates of Fine Particulate Matter using a Combined Geophysical-Statistical Method with Information from Satellites, Models, and Monitors," Environ. Sci. Technol 50, no. 7 (2016): 3762–3772; GBD 2017 Risk Factors Collaborators, "Global, regional, and national comparative risk assessment of 84 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks for 194 countries and territories, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017," Lancet 392 (2018): 1923-1994; Shaddick G, Thomas M, Amini H, Broday DM, Cohen A, Frostad J, Green A, Gumy S, Liu Y, Martin RV, Prüss-Üstün A, Simpson D, van Donkelaar A, Brauer M. Data integration for the assessment of population exposure to ambient air pollution for global burden of disease assessment. Environ Sci Technol. 2018 Jun 29. Data provided by Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle. Data on exposure to ambient air pollution are derived from estimates of annual concentrations of very fine particulates produced by the Global Burden of Disease study, an international scientific effort led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington. Estimates of annual concentrations are generated by combining data from atmospheric chemistry transport models, satellite observations of aerosols in the atmosphere, and ground-level monitoring of particulates. Exposure to concentrations of PM2.5 in both urban and rural areas is weighted by population and is aggregated at the national level.

Topic: Environment: Emissions


name: PM2.5 air pollution, mean annual exposure (micrograms per cubic meter)

sourceNote: Population-weighted exposure to ambient PM2.5 pollution is defined as the average level of exposure of a nation's population to concentrations of suspended particles measuring less than 2.5 microns in aerodynamic diameter, which are capable of penetrating deep into the respiratory tract and causing severe health damage. Exposure is calculated by weighting mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 by population in both urban and rural areas.

sourceOrganization: Global Burden of Disease Collaborative Network. 2021. Global Burden of Disease Study 2019 (GBD 2019) Air Pollution Exposure Estimates 1990-2019. Seattle, United States of America: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). https://doi.org/10.6069/70JS-NC54


name: East Asia & Pacific (excluding high income)


Developmentrelevance: Air pollution places a major burden on world health. In many places, including cities but also in rural areas, exposure to air pollution is the main environmental threat to health, responsible for 6.5 million deaths per year, about one every 5 seconds. Around 40 percent of the world’s people rely on household burning of wood, charcoal, dung, crop waste, or coal to meet basic energy needs. Cooking and heating with solid fuels create harmful smoke and particles that fill homes and the surrounding environment. Household air pollution from cooking and heating with solid fuels is responsible for 2.9 million deaths a year. Long-term exposure to high levels of fine particles in the air contributes to a range of health effects, including respiratory diseases, lung cancer, and heart disease, resulting in 4.2 million deaths annually. Not only does exposure to air pollution affect the health of the world’s people, it also carries huge economic costs and represents a drag on development, particularly for low and middle income countries and vulnerable segments of the population such as children and the elderly. Three interim targets were defined for PM2.5 and have been shown to be achievable with successive and sustained abatement measures. Countries may find these interim targets particularly helpful in gauging progress over time in the difficult process of steadily reducing population exporsure to PM. IT-1 level corresponds to the highest mean concentrations reported in studies of long-term effects, and may also reflect higher but unknown historical concentrations that may have been contributed to observed health effects. IT-1 level has been shown to be associated with significant mortality in the developed world.

IndicatorName: PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim Target-1 value (% of total)

Longdefinition: Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) Interim Target 1 (IT-1) is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 35 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Guideline (AQG) of 10 micrograms per cubic meter is recommended by the WHO as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.

Source: Brauer, M. et al. 2017, for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: A. van Donkelaar, R.V. Martin, M. Brauer, N.C. Hsu, R.A. Kahn, R.C. Levy, A. Lyapustin, A.M. Sayer, D.M. Winker, "Global Estimates of Fine Particulate Matter using a Combined Geophysical-Statistical Method with Information from Satellites, Models, and Monitors," Environ. Sci. Technol 50, no. 7 (2016): 3762–3772;GBD 2017 Risk Factors Collaborators, "Global, regional, and national comparative risk assessment of 84 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks for 194 countries and territories, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017," Lancet 392 (2018): 1923-1994; Shaddick G, Thomas M, Amini H, Broday DM, Cohen A, Frostad J, Green A, Gumy S, Liu Y, Martin RV, Prüss-Üstün A, Simpson D, van Donkelaar A, Brauer M. Data integration for the assessment of population exposure to ambient air pollution for global burden of disease assessment. Environ Sci Technol. 2018 Jun 29. Data provided by Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle. Data on exposure to ambient air pollution are derived from estimates of annual concentrations of very fine particulates produced by the Global Burden of Disease study, an international scientific effort led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington. Estimates of annual concentrations are generated by combining data from atmospheric chemistry transport models, satellite observations of aerosols in the atmosphere, and ground-level monitoring of particulates. Overlaying PM2.5 estimates with gridded population data, the percent of a nation's people that lives in areas where PM2.5 concentrations exceed recommended levels is calculated by summing the population for grid cells where PM2.5 concentrations are beyond a threshold value, in this case 10 micrograms per cubic meter, and then dividing by total population.


name: PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim Target-1 value (% of total)

sourceNote: Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) Interim Target 1 (IT-1) is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 35 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Guideline (AQG) of 10 micrograms per cubic meter is recommended by the WHO as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.

sourceOrganization: Brauer, M. et al. 2017, for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017.


name: Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)


Developmentrelevance: Air pollution places a major burden on world health. In many places, including cities but also in rural areas, exposure to air pollution is the main environmental threat to health, responsible for 6.5 million deaths per year, about one every 5 seconds. Around 40 percent of the world’s people rely on household burning of wood, charcoal, dung, crop waste, or coal to meet basic energy needs. Cooking and heating with solid fuels create harmful smoke and particles that fill homes and the surrounding environment. Household air pollution from cooking and heating with solid fuels is responsible for 2.9 million deaths a year. Long-term exposure to high levels of fine particles in the air contributes to a range of health effects, including respiratory diseases, lung cancer, and heart disease, resulting in 4.2 million deaths annually. Not only does exposure to air pollution affect the health of the world’s people, it also carries huge economic costs and represents a drag on development, particularly for low and middle income countries and vulnerable segments of the population such as children and the elderly. Three interim targets were defined for PM2.5 and have been shown to be achievable with successive and sustained abatement measures. Countries may find these interim targets particularly helpful in gauging progress over time in the difficult process of steadily reducing population exporsure to PM. IT-2 level is greater than the mean concentration at which effects have been observed in studies of long-term exposure and mortality and is likely to be associated with significant health impacts from both long-term and daily exposures to PM2.5. Attainment of IT-2 value would reduce the health risks of long-term exposure by about 6% relative to the IT-1 value.

IndicatorName: PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim Target-2 value (% of total)

Longdefinition: Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) Interim Target 2 (IT-2) is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 25 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Guideline (AQG) of 10 micrograms per cubic meter is recommended by the WHO as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.

Statisticalconceptandmethodology: A. van Donkelaar, R.V. Martin, M. Brauer, N.C. Hsu, R.A. Kahn, R.C. Levy, A. Lyapustin, A.M. Sayer, D.M. Winker, "Global Estimates of Fine Particulate Matter using a Combined Geophysical-Statistical Method with Information from Satellites, Models, and Monitors," Environ. Sci. Technol 50, no. 7 (2016): 3762–3772; GBD 2017 Risk Factors Collaborators, "Global, regional, and national comparative risk assessment of 84 behavioural, environmental and occupational, and metabolic risks or clusters of risks for 194 countries and territories, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017," Lancet 392 (2018): 1923-1994; Shaddick G, Thomas M, Amini H, Broday DM, Cohen A, Frostad J, Green A, Gumy S, Liu Y, Martin RV, Prüss-Üstün A, Simpson D, van Donkelaar A, Brauer M. Data integration for the assessment of population exposure to ambient air pollution for global burden of disease assessment. Environ Sci Technol. 2018 Jun 29. Data provided by Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, Seattle. Data on exposure to ambient air pollution are derived from estimates of annual concentrations of very fine particulates produced by the Global Burden of Disease study, an international scientific effort led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington. Estimates of annual concentrations are generated by combining data from atmospheric chemistry transport models, satellite observations of aerosols in the atmosphere, and ground-level monitoring of particulates. Overlaying PM2.5 estimates with gridded population data, the percent of a nation's people that lives in areas where PM2.5 concentrations exceed recommended levels is calculated by summing the population for grid cells where PM2.5 concentrations are beyond a threshold value, in this case 10 micrograms per cubic meter, and then dividing by total population.


name: PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim Target-2 value (% of total)

sourceNote: Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) Interim Target 2 (IT-2) is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 25 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Guideline (AQG) of 10 micrograms per cubic meter is recommended by the WHO as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.


name: Sub-Saharan Africa (IDA & IBRD countries)


Developmentrelevance: Air pollution places a major burden on world health. In many places, including cities but also in rural areas, exposure to air pollution is the main environmental threat to health, responsible for 6.5 million deaths per year, about one every 5 seconds. Around 40 percent of the world’s people rely on household burning of wood, charcoal, dung, crop waste, or coal to meet basic energy needs. Cooking and heating with solid fuels create harmful smoke and particles that fill homes and the surrounding environment. Household air pollution from cooking and heating with solid fuels is responsible for 2.9 million deaths a year. Long-term exposure to high levels of fine particles in the air contributes to a range of health effects, including respiratory diseases, lung cancer, and heart disease, resulting in 4.2 million deaths annually. Not only does exposure to air pollution affect the health of the world’s people, it also carries huge economic costs and represents a drag on development, particularly for low and middle income countries and vulnerable segments of the population such as children and the elderly. Three interim targets were defined for PM2.5 and have been shown to be achievable with successive and sustained abatement measures. Countries may find these interim targets particularly helpful in gauging progress over time in the difficult process of steadily reducing population exporsure to PM. IT-3 level places greater weight than IT-2 on the likelihood of signifcant effects associated with long-term exposures. IT-3 value is close to the mean concentrations that are reported in studies of long-term exposure and provides an additional 6% reduction in mortality risk relative to the IT-2 value.

IndicatorName: PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim Target-3 value (% of total)

Longdefinition: Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) Interim Target 3 (IT-3) is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 15 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Guideline (AQG) of 10 micrograms per cubic meter is recommended by the WHO as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.


name: PM2.5 pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO Interim Target-3 value (% of total)

sourceNote: Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the World Health Organization (WHO) Interim Target 3 (IT-3) is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 15 micrograms per cubic meter. The Air Quality Guideline (AQG) of 10 micrograms per cubic meter is recommended by the WHO as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.


name: East Asia & Pacific (IDA & IBRD countries)


IndicatorName: PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO guideline value (% of total)

Longdefinition: Percent of population exposed to ambient concentrations of PM2.5 that exceed the WHO guideline value is defined as the portion of a country’s population living in places where mean annual concentrations of PM2.5 are greater than 10 micrograms per cubic meter, the guideline value recommended by the World Health Organization as the lower end of the range of concentrations over which adverse health effects due to PM2.5 exposure have been observed.