Evidence-Based Rapid Review of Clean Cooking: Lessons for Nigeria and Other Developing Economies

Biomass-fuel use by over 2 billion of the world’s population contributes to their poor respiratory health and climate change. This paper traces the history of clean cooking and explores strategies for its sustained adoption in developing countries, such as Nigeria, drawing on global lessons from past successes and failures. This study employed a rapid review methodology to synthesize evidence and inform decision-making on the adoption of clean cooking. The research was guided by a central question on how to promote long-term adoption in Nigeria and similar developing countries. Literature was retrieved from the Scopus database using multiple search strings, with “clean cook fuel*” providing the most comprehensive results; 200 articles were selected from Scopus, and 23 additional relevant articles were sourced from Google Scholar. In total, 223 publications were thematically categorized into the following areas: policy, health, gender, fuels, technology, and climate change. Deductive thematic analysis was then applied to identify key insights and structure the paper’s discussion around the historical evolution of clean cooking, adoption challenges, and policy recommendations. The historical evolution from ‘improved cookstoves’ to ‘clean cooking’ illustrates a significant shift in focus from improving the efficiency of biomass fuel use to promoting modern, cleaner energy sources, such as Liquefied Petroleum Gas and electricity. However, the transition has been hindered by persistent barriers, including the high cost of cleaner alternatives, unreliable supply chains, and a lack of social acceptance in many communities. Similarly, interventions often fall short due to inadequate planning, insufficient stakeholder engagement, and the failure to address the specific needs and preferences of local populations. To overcome the challenges of the clean cooking sector, a more nuanced approach is needed that combines market-based strategies with targeted subsidies, taking into account the socio-economic realities of the target population. Specifically, there is a need for context-specific interventions that are culturally sensitive and economically feasible, and for the ongoing adaptation (and innovation) of clean cooking solutions to the preferences of different population demographies. Achieving universal access to clean cooking requires a coordinated and sustained effort involving multiple stakeholders, including governments, international organizations, non-government organizations, and local communities.