Science-driven philanthropy organisation, the Rockefeller Foundation on Thursday announced the launch of the Global Commission to End Energy Poverty (GCEEP).

The commission will drive an agenda towards providing electricity to millions of people, in pursuit of the United Nations’ (UN’s) 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The GCEEP is an acceleration of the Rockefeller Foundation's work on energy poverty and will fast-track sustainable power solutions, investments and partnerships that will deploy globally over the next decade.

The commission will be co-chaired by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) physics professor Ernest Moniz, Rockefeller Foundation president and former US Energy Secretary Dr Rajiv Shah, and African Development Bank president Akinwumi Adesina.

About 840-million people live without energy access today and, according to the World Bank, 650-million people will still lack access to energy in 2030, falling far short of the UN’s SDGs.

Ninety per cent of these 650-million live in sub-Saharan Africa.

"Access to electricity has increased dramatically in the past two decades, thanks to massive public and private investment in grid infrastructure; however, to reach those who remain beyond the reach of the grid, it will require redoubled investment, innovative thinking and cooperative action on the part of a host of individuals and institutions.

“Our commission brings together an extraordinary group of leaders with unique talents and knowledge and a determination to finish the job,” noted Moniz.

The commission intends to forge a robust, actionable consensus that lays out viable pathways for accelerating energy access quickly and cost-efficiently. It is comprised of heads of development banks, utilities and off-grid firms, along with senior academics, industry leaders and investors.

GCEEP will be supported by the work of a research team led by GCEEP secretary and MIT Energy Initiative deputy director Robert Stoner and MIT visiting professor Ignacio Perez-Arriaga. The research team is focused on identifying and addressing the barriers to achieving universal, economically impactful electrification.

"Energy poverty is the end result of the failure of a complex system that spans physical infrastructure, advanced technologies, markets, policy and regulation. Ending it requires finding generalisable solutions that make all parts of the electricity systems of low access countries reliable and affordable for everyone," said Stoner.