Sub-Saharan Africa: Combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Sub-Saharan Africa's combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy) rose 0.22 percentage points on 2023 (from 56.35% to 56.57%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −0.08 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.68 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1.97 percentage points in 2020 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.33 percentage points in 2007. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.25 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 72% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

What this measures

Combustible renewables and waste comprise solid biomass, liquid biomass, biogas, industrial waste, and municipal waste, measured as a percentage of total energy use. The indicator expresses the share of total energy supply.

Limitations: 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.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 35 values

Combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy) in nearby economies

• Algeria — 0.02% (2024)
• Bahrain — 0% (2023)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 3.34% (2024)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 0.18% (2024)
• Iraq — 0.08% (2024)
• Israel — 0.4% (2024)
• Jordan — 0.94% (2024)
• Kuwait — 0.53% (2024)
• Lebanon — 8.15% (2024)
• Libya

More environment data for Sub-Saharan Africa

• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 25.39% (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million (% of total population) — 16.33% (2025)
• Rural population — 731.42 million (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 55.34% (2025)
• Urban population — 590.23 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 44.66% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 904,661 (2024)
• Capture fisheries production (metric tons) — 8.8 million (2024)
• Total fisheries production (metric tons)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Sub-Saharan Africa's combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy)?

56.57% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1990?

It is down 0.23 percentage points from 56.8% in 1990. The highest value was 60.19% in 1994 and the lowest 54.26% in 2014.

Is the latest change in combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy) unusual for Sub-Saharan Africa?

In 2024, Sub-Saharan Africa's combustible renewables and waste (% of total energy) rose 0.22 percentage points on 2023 (from 56.35% to 56.57%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −0.08 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.68 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator EG.USE.CRNW.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: IEA Energy Statistics Data Browser, International Energy Agency (IEA), uri: https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/energy-statistics-data-browser, publisher: International Energy Agency (IEA), date accessed: 2025-03-25 Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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