By William Emmanuel Ukpoju
Despite Nigeria’s ambitious declaration of a “Decade of Gas” and its vast reserves of over 206 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, access to clean cooking energy—specifically Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)—remains a distant reality for the majority of Nigerians. The federal government’s push for mass LPG adoption, intended to transform kitchens, reduce reliance on polluting fuels, and drive a clean energy transition, is increasingly being undermined by a perfect storm of economic, structural, and social barriers. Rising prices, poor distribution infrastructure, and widespread poverty are pushing many households back to firewood, charcoal, and kerosene—fuels that come with devastating health, environmental, and gender implications.
This article explores the complex web of issues slowing down LPG adoption in Nigeria, despite bold policy initiatives like the National Gas Policy, the LPG Expansion Programme, and recent tax exemptions on cooking gas equipment. It highlights the alarming health consequences of continued biomass use, including over 64,000 premature deaths annually due to indoor air pollution. It also examines the underlying economic and infrastructural challenges—such as volatile LPG prices, import dependence, weak domestic supply, and the unaffordability of cylinders and refills—that have left the country with one of the lowest clean cooking penetration rates in sub-Saharan Africa.
Additionally, the article delves into the gendered impact of energy poverty, the climate risks associated with deforestation and black carbon emissions, and the broader socio-economic toll of a slow clean cooking transition. Finally, it outlines the urgent steps needed to correct course—ranging from targeted subsidies and financing to rural access expansion, technology investment, and public education. At its core, this piece argues that without a renewed, inclusive, and aggressive national strategy, Nigeria’s kitchens will continue to undermine its energy transition goals, climate pledges, and human development priorities.
The prevailing challenges around access to Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), popularly called cooking gas, continue to disrupt the federal government’s effort towards LPG adoption and the ‘Decade of Gas’ initiative of the government, which seeks to ramp up gas penetration nationwide.
Nigeria has one of the largest gas deposits in the world, which is over 206 trillion cubic feet, and in recent times has been pushing for the majority of its population to adopt LPG as the major source of cooking to meet clean cooking targets under the global energy transition.
In March 2021, the federal government declared the ‘Decade of Gas’ initiative, signalling its intention to fully implement the National Gas Policy approved by the federal executive council in 2017. Following this declaration was the rollout of the National LPG Expansion Programme, which seeks to increase the domestic utilisation of LPG with the aim of reversing the 5 per cent adoption of LPG for cooking to 90 per cent in 10 years. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) followed suit with a multibillion-naira facility to improve access to finance for private sector investments in the domestic gas value chain and ultimately fast-track the adoption of CNG as the fuel of choice for domestic cooking.
In 2023, the Federal Government took a more drastic step by putting a stop to exports of locally produced LPG from November 1, 2024. As a long-term measure, the government announced plans to develop storage, blending, and distribution facilities. The export ban was expected to bring some relief to households burdened by the rising cost of living.
However, despite these efforts and interventions, recent trends indicate a concerning regression, with many households reverting to traditional polluting fuels. This reversal is largely driven by the rising costs of LPG, which have become increasingly unaffordable for a significant segment of the population.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), over 120 million Nigerians still rely on solid fuels for cooking, making Nigeria the country with the largest population without access to clean cooking in sub-Saharan Africa. The costs—in lives, health, the environment, and gender equality—are staggering. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2022, only 11.3% of Nigerian households use LPG as their primary cooking fuel, while a majority still rely on firewood (56.5%), charcoal (16.5%), and kerosene (11.8%).
As of 2024, the situation had worsened, as only about 10.5% of Nigerian households report LPG as their primary cooking fuel, with the remaining households relying on firewood (62%), kerosene (20%), and charcoal (4%), according to the National Bureau of Statistics via Nigeria National Clean Cooking Policy, 2024. According to the Clean Cooking Alliance, Nigeria Country Profile 2023, more than 85% of Nigeria’s population continues to cook with polluting fuels, such as firewood, charcoal, and kerosene, despite the health and environmental risks
A Crisis in the Kitchen
The continued reliance on traditional cooking methods comes with serious risks: household air pollution from solid fuels contributes to over 64,000 premature deaths annually in Nigeria, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Women and girls bear the brunt, spending hours daily gathering wood, inhaling toxic smoke, and sacrificing education and economic opportunities. The widespread use of firewood and charcoal contributes to deforestation and CO2 emissions, undermining Nigeria’s climate commitments under the Paris Agreement.
“Cooking with wood smoke is equivalent to smoking several packs of cigarettes a day,” says Dr. Zainab Musa, a public health expert based in Kaduna. “It’s one of the most underestimated killers in rural Nigeria.”
The energy poverty that drives dependence on biomass fuels disproportionately affects women. A 2022 report by Clean Cooking Alliance Nigeria found that rural women spend an average of 20 hours weekly gathering fuelwood, time that could be spent on income-generating activities or education.
Moreover, prolonged exposure to indoor smoke increases women’s risk of chronic bronchitis, cataracts, and pregnancy complications. “Clean cooking is not just about fuel—it’s about freedom, health, and empowerment.”
Another consequence of the reliance on cooking fuel outside of LPG is the climate impact of these dirty fuels. Nigeria loses over 400,000 hectares of forest annually, largely due to firewood harvesting. The black carbon emissions from biomass burning are potent climate forcers, contributing more to global warming than CO2 in the short term.
Ironically, while Nigeria is pushing for global climate finance and a green energy transition, its kitchens are still among the biggest emitters of climate-harming pollutants.
The African Refiners and Distribution Association (ARDA) and other experts in LPG had warned of imminent danger if Africa fails to quickly adopt modern clean energy, as over 850 million Africans still depend on solid fuels (biomass) for cooking. Without strategic efforts towards energy transition, especially for cooking, the experts of the ARDA believe that solid fuels might continue to kill over 600,000 Africans yearly due to household air pollution.
Why Is LPG Adoption So Slow?
Despite aggressive campaigns by development agencies and the federal government, several barriers continue to hinder the adoption of clean cooking technologies, particularly LPG.
The initial cost of an LPG cylinder remains unaffordable for many Nigerians. A standard 6kg cylinder setup can cost N25,000–N30,000, while refilling is increasingly expensive due to inflation and dollar volatility.
“Even if we get the cylinder free, we can’t afford to refill it every time,” says Aisha, a mother of five in Kogi State, who still uses firewood for cooking.
A market survey by Valuechain across major LPG filling outlets in Abuja, Lagos, Ibadan and Kano showed that the cost of cooking gas currently hovers around N1,000 and N1,300 per kilogramme (depending on the state and retail outlet) across the country, and there are fears that the price may rise further.
Although Nigeria has a domestic LPG consumption capacity of 3 million tonnes per annum, consumption hovers between 1.2 million and 1.4 million tonnes. Of this number, the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) supplies about 40 per cent, while 60 per cent is imported. The implication is that most parts of the LPG consumed in Nigeria are imported. Nigeria’s heavy reliance on imports to meet more than half of its domestic LPG consumption has exacerbated the adversities faced by industry operators. Consequently, one major factor that has been attributed to the rising LPG cost is the exchange rate of the naira to the dollar. Because the product is imported, the price of the product is connected to how much the Naira is worth compared to the dollar. Factors such as changes in exchange rates have had a significant effect on energy prices in recent times and could undoubtedly be some of the reasons for price hikes witnessed in the domestic market.
Gas supply to the domestic market (by implication, LPG production) continues to be heavily compromised by numerous upstream factors, the single biggest one of which is crude oil theft. As a result of the disruption that this created, the capacity utilisation of NLNG, the major domestic producer of LPG, is negatively impacted.
The high cost of LPG continues to soar despite all the measures implemented by the federal government to crash the price of the product. The government had in November 2023 announced the withdrawal of value-added tax (VAT) and customs duty on the importation of LPG and its associated equipment. This policy action aimed to bring down the cost of cooking gas across the country, thereby ameliorating the hardship faced by Nigerians in accessing LPG.
According to the ministry, other items exempted from VAT and duty payment are LPG cylinders, LPG cascades, gas leak detectors, steel pipes, steel valves and fittings, LPG dispensers, gas generators, and LPG trucks, among others.
Interventions by the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) company, which supplies around 40% of the domestic LPG consumption, as well as efforts by other players in the domestic LPG space to increase supply to the Nigerian markets, have also recently been made.
However, all these efforts have not prevented the cost of LPG from continuing to skyrocket since the second half of 2023.
In many rural and semi-urban areas, LPG retail outlets are scarce or non-existent. Firewood, on the other hand, is freely gathered or cheaply bought.
What Needs to Be Done
There is growing momentum among stakeholders to scale clean cooking access, but it requires bold, coordinated action.
Targeted subsidies for LPG refills and low-interest financing for cylinders and cookstoves could make adoption more attractive. “We must treat cooking gas like an essential energy need, not a luxury product,” says Eyo Bassey, CEO of a clean energy start-up in Abuja.
Investments are needed in last-mile LPG distribution—especially in rural areas. Incentivising private dealers and transporters can make access easier and cheaper.
Public awareness and culturally sensitive education campaigns are critical. Community champions—especially women leaders—can help promote adoption by dispelling myths about clean fuels.
Supporting local production of improved biomass cookstoves and LPG cylinders will reduce costs, create jobs, and drive innovation.
The transition to clean cooking is not just an energy issue—it is a public health crisis, a gender equity challenge, and a climate imperative. If Nigeria is serious about sustainable development, clean cooking must become a national priority.
Until then, millions will continue to cook with danger—breathing in death with every meal.