testing Some 2.3 billion people across 128 countries breathe in harmful smoke when they cook on basic stoves or over open fires, according to an International Energy Agency (IEA)-African Development Bank (ADB) report that sounded the alarm last year
A third of the world cooks with fuels which produce harmful fumes when burned, including wood, charcoal, coal, animal dung and agricultural waste. Image credit: Shutterstock
It said 3.7 million people a year die prematurely from harmful cooking practices, with children and women most at risk.
The IEA said the "unprecedented" Paris gathering aims to be "a moment of changing the direction", its sustainability and technology director Laura Cozzi told journalists.
The problem "touches on gender, it touches on forestry, it touches on climate change, it touches on energy, it touches on health," added Cozzi.
A third of the world cooks with fuels which produce harmful fumes when burned, including wood, charcoal, coal, animal dung and agricultural waste.
They pollute indoor and outdoor air with fine particles that penetrate the lungs and cause multiple respiratory and cardiovascular problems, including cancer and strokes.