New Delhi, October 2, 2016: India has the largest population without access to electricity but it’s not the worst performer.
Around the world, 1.3 billion people lack access to electricity. More than 526 million are in Asia and India has the largest population that does not have access to electricity, according to the International Energy Agency, the global energy watchdog, which amassed the data.
While India has a staggering 237 million people lacking access to electricity, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Indonesia have 60 million, 50 million and 49 million people respectively without access to electricity. Myanmar and Philippines also have to meet the challenge of providing electricity access to 36 and 21 million people respectively.
Though not as formidable as their other Asian counterparts, South Korea, Cambodia and Nepal also have the task to provide access to power to millions of people.
A closer look at the numbers shows when measured relative to the size of the population, India’s national electrification rate is 81 percent which is much higher than Myanmar, Cambodia, Philippines, Bangladesh and Pakistan. About 68 percent of population in Myanmar, 66 percent in Cambodia, 38 percent in Bangladesh, 27 percent in Pakistan and 21 percent in Philippines does not have access to electricity, as per IEA data.
Many Asian countries, however, have succeeded in providing 100 per cent erelectricity to their populations. Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore, have mostly achieved the goal of providing electricity access to all its citizens.
China, Thailand, Laos and Sri Lanka have also been moderately successful in providing access to electricity to all their citizens, with each now just have one million people without access to electricity.
Image Source: The Third Pole
