World Energy Outlook 2007

Yet there may be some transferable strategies. For example, the Chinese
government put in place a supportive institutional framework by
establishing the electrification goal as part of its poverty alleviation
campaign in the mid-1980s and maintaining an unwavering commitment
to it. This facilitated mobilisation at the local level. The plan prioritised the
building of basic infrastructure and the creation of local enterprises.
Numerous local networks based on hydropower were gradually
incorporated into the provincial grids by the Ministry of Electric Power and
later by State Power. The most remote communities benefited from
programmes of decentralised electrification, often with renewable energy.
But the most important lesson for other developing countries and
the international community may be that electrified countries reap great
benefits, both in terms of economic growth and human welfare.
In this respect, China stands as an example.
Although rural electrification programmes have been particularly successful
(Box 8.4), the level of supply of electricity to a large proportion of the rural
population is modest. The availability of clean-burning gaseous fuels is also
very limited in rural areas and they are not affordable to many families.
These issues are addressed in the 11 th Five-Year Plan, which promotes
the development of off-grid renewables, biogas and solar thermal technologies,
among others, supported by technical outreach, grants and credit facilities.
For cooking and hot water, large integrated biogas programmes have been
carried out through the rural energy centres of the Ministry of Agriculture.
Nevertheless, many millions of rural households will continue to rely
on traditional biomass to meet much of their energy needs, even as China’s
cities swell with citizens whose patterns of consumption are converging with
those of their counterparts in already developed countries.
282 World Energy Outlook 2007 - CHINA’S ENERGY PROSPECTS