Powering Healthcare

Electricity is required for running basic diagnostics and medical procedures, for ventilation and sterilization, and to store medicines and vaccines. This is in addition to other critical needs like water pumping, sanitation, lighting, cooling, heating, and rolling out tele-medicine services. Electricity also plays a role in creating a conducive and safe environment for patients and staff.

A joint report by the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Bank, IRENA and SEforALL estimates that globally, nearly one billion people access health facilities that are either unelectrified or have unreliable electricity. In India alone, the Rural Health Statistics reveals that several thousands of sub-centers are yet to be electrified. Moreover, several charitable or not-for-profit health facilities that provide affordable and accessible health care to unserved, underserved, and under-resourced populations face similar challenges. Ensuring access to sustainable, reliable, and affordable electricity in rural health facilities is a crucial factor in attaining universal health coverage and deserves significant attention.

Through research, data visualization and implementation support, WRI India has been partnering with government agencies, development partners and health stakeholders to enable access to reliable and sustainable energy in health facilities.

Powering Healthcare Facts

As of 2023,1 billion people,mostly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia lack access to electrified health facilities with or ones with a reliable grid connection. World Health Organization,2023
Decentralized solar energy initiatives have already provided reliable electricity to over 3,000 rural health facilities in India. (Spoonful of Solar Report, WRI India)
In India, nearly 18,000 health sub-centres and primary health centres function without access to electricity. Due to unreliable access to electricity, many facilities have to rely on diesel generators (Rural Health Statistics 2021-22)

Powering Healthcare Projects

Publications & Resources

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Decarbonizing Healthcare

WRI India is working to deliver clean energy solutions at health facilities across states such as Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Assam.

Energy for Health in Climate Vulnerable Areas

Solar energy solutions are increasingly considered for bringing reliable electricity especially in climate vulnerable areas.

Energy Access Explorer for Healthcare

Energy Access Explorer is an online open-source geospatial tool which visualizes energy demand data with the energy supply for integrated energy planning.

Capacity Building of Stakeholders

WRI India has been supporting various stakeholders to build their capacity to integrate energy needs in their development activities. This includes building capacity of state and district level officials and development partner organizations to adopt data-driven energy planning. We have been training health administration, medical staff, electricians and community members to procure, install, operate and maintain decentralized energy systems in their facilities. We have also supported development partner organizations to integrate monitoring, evaluation and learning approaches in their work to track the impacts of energy interventions in their project implementation.