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| Paris alignment | Reasoning |
|---|---|
| Some progress | The IDB dedicated 18.59% of total energy financing in the fiscal period 2018–2022 to energy access. The Bank has committed to the Sustainable Energy for All initiative (targeting universal energy access by 2030) in the Americas but does not have an explicit commitment to connect the last 16.2 million people in the region without access to electricity. There remains limited evidence that the Bank’s progress tracking on energy access is sufficiently granular and comprehensive, with the sole exception of the aggregated indicator on “improved access to energy services” within the Corporate Results Framework. Relevant strategy documents do not consistently include a quantifiable, time-bound target for energy access (nor a minimum definition for access, such as through the Multi-Tier Framework). |
| Alignment and reasoning | |
| Energy Access Target | The IDB has committed to theSustainable Energy for All initiative (targeting universal energy access by 2030) in the Americas but does not have an explicit commitment to connect the last 16.2 million people in the region without access to electricity. There is no quantifiable, time-bound target for energy access consistently integrated in relevant strategy documents (namely the Energy Sector Framework Document or IDB Group Corporate Results Framework). |
| Minimum Definition of Access | Despite evidence of considering availability, quality, affordability, and reliability for energy access, the Multi-Tier Framework for measuring energy access remains absent from key documents and frameworks setting out minimum definitions for energy access. |
| % of Energy Financing Dedicated to Energy Access | Data from the Public Finance for Energy Database suggests that 18.59% of total energy financing in the fiscal period 2018–2022 was dedicated to energy access. This represents a significant increase from the corresponding figure of 3.1% for 2014–2017. |
| Is Progress Monitored | In the annual Development Effectiveness Overview, the number of households with “improved living conditions” is provided as a result of projects in the active portfolio. Moreover, the Corporate Results Framework includes an aggregated indicator on energy access covering “households with improved access to energy services”. |
| Progress against Metrics | The aggregated energy access indicator of the Corporate Results Framework suggests the IDB Group has been providing a steadily increasing number of households provided with improved access to energy services annually over the period 2020–2022. However, without clearly defined, disaggregated, granular metrics on energy access, gauging progress is difficult. |
Energy access target and minimum definition of access
The IDB still lacks a formal, explicit commitment to a quantifiable, time-bound target for energy access as part of its Energy Sector Framework. However, it is notably partnered with Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) which has a target of universal energy access by 2030.
The IDB hosts the Latin America and the Caribbean Hub for the UN’s Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) initiative, SE4All Americas. Founded in 2011 by the IDB, this Hub is in partnership with the UNDP, the Organización Latino-Americana de Energia (OLADE) and Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). Operationally, the Hub is supported by: the Energy Access Network, which focuses on modern energy access and runs pilot programmes; the Bank’s Technical Assistance Facility, which gathers and analyses various data throughout the region and facilitates technical assistance and capacity building; and the Regional Platform, which facilitates knowledge sharing and networking.
To further SE4All goals, the Bank has partnered with the Alliance for Rural Electrification (ARE) to address the systemic challenges hindering modern electrification such as poverty and inequality. The partnership seeks to find public and private solutions to deliver innovative, decentralised and renewable energy security to homes throughout the region.
While the IDB’s Energy Sector Framework[1] references the SE4ALL energy access objectives, it stops short of explicitly endorsing and committing to them. Furthermore, the SE4All Multi-Tier Framework (MTF) (developed by the World Bank) for measuring energy access is absent from key IDB documents and frameworks setting out minimum standard definitions for energy access. Instead, the Energy Sector Framework still relies on a broad and imprecise definition of energy access. To account for the spectrum of quality in energy access (in order to develop a nuanced understanding of gaps and design targeted, impactful approaches), energy access must be defined and monitored in a multi-faceted way. The capacity, reliability, affordability and availability of energy should all be accounted for, with the MTF being a best-practice example for doing so.
Energy access progress
Data from the Public Finance for Energy Database suggests that 18.59% of total energy financing in the fiscal period 2018–2022 was dedicated to energy access, which represents a significant improvement from the corresponding figure of 3.1% for the fiscal period 2014–2017.
There is limited evidence of sufficiently granular and comprehensive monitoring and reporting by the bank. The annual Development Effectiveness Overview refers to the number of households with “improved living conditions” (including through improved access to energy) as a result of projects in the active portfolio. The IDB Group’s Corporate Results Framework (CRF) includes an indicator more specific to energy access, covering “households with improved access to energy services”. This figure has shown a steadily increasing trend for the years covered by the CRF to date (2020–2022), increasing from 263,410 during 2020, to 464,916 during 2022.
However, this figure covers both “new or improved access to energy services as a result of IDBG supported operations”, including both on- and off-grid connections. Moreover, “energy services” comprises electricity supply, clean cooking technologies, and heating technologies. Consequently, the resultant aggregate figure provides a relatively broad and imprecise account of the IDB Group’s contribution to energy access.
Recommendations:
- The IDB should set an explicit, quantifiable, time-bound target for energy access as part of its Energy Sector Framework. The IDB could reference the practice of other MDBs, such as the AfDB, which has committed to an overarching goal of universal energy access across Africa by 2025, and adopted specific quantifiable access targets to achieve this. As part of this, the IDB could provide more clarity regarding how it envisions contributing to the SE4ALL target of universal energy access by 2030.
- The IDB should adopt the Multi-Tier Framework for energy access developed by the World Bank. This will help to ground the tracking and reporting of its own contribution to improving energy access in a robust and transparent understanding of what exactly this means in practical terms.
- The IDB should monitor and report on its contribution to improving regional energy access at a more granular level. As a first step, it should disaggregate the CRF indicator of “households with improved access to energy services” to specify numbers for each of the three energy services covered (electricity supply, clean cooking technologies, and heating technologies).
[1] According to IDB officials, the IDB is preparing a new energy sector framework document. This will be reviewed by E3G as soon as it is available, with any relevant updates reflected in this section.
Last Update: February 2025