By Betty Maina As the world braces to review the developments
made since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 on sustainable
development, it is important to look at one of the main factors
of sustainable development today â energy and its access. Energy
is no doubt the driving force of livelihoods in any
civilisation. As a matter of fact, access to quality energy
sources often determines bloom or gloom in many societies. As
populations surge and the need for more resources to sustain the
swelling numbers is vital, it is critical to look at the energy
capacity to support the heightened demand levels for food and
other products. Access to energy sources has continued to be a
challenge especially at the household level. It is complicated
by the gender disparity issue especially in many African
economies. It is for this reason that developing nations should
pay greater attention to the challenges of energy access and
particularly so with the gender factor in mind. As the world
progresses towards sustainable development i