Cooking in the margins: Exploring the role of liquefied petroleum gas for refugees in low-income countries

Abstract Framed by the United Nation's 'Clean Energy Challenge' to achieve universal energy access for all (SDG7) for the world's 82 million forcibly displaced persons, we focus on the role of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in delivering clean cooking solutions for refugees and host communities in resource-poor countries. Notwithstanding scepticism towards LPG among the majority of Western donors, we summarise evidence to indicate the latent market demand for LPG among refugees, as a cleaner, safer and lower-carbon technology option compared to the baseline scenario in most circumstances. Further, we argue that LPG offers a culturally appropriate and in many cases commercially viable solution in low-income hosting contexts, including rural areas, where host governments promote LPG in national energy access policy and planning. To this end, we argue the case for a Global LPG Market Creation Fund for displaced populations and nearby host communities, to kick-start investment in commercially oriented business models.