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The World Bank’s electricity-access indicator, EG.ELC.ACCS.ZS, reports the percentage of a country’s population counted as having access to electricity. It is a measure of how widespread access is—not how much electricity people use or whether power is dependable, affordable, safe, or available around the clock.
What does the indicator measure?
The World Bank defines EG.ELC.ACCS.ZS as “Access to electricity is the percentage of population with access to electricity.” In plain terms, it counts people with access relative to the population and reports the result as a percentage. The World Bank’s indicator page displays annual series coverage for 1990–2024.
Read the figure as a population-level access measure. It is not a measure of electricity consumed per person, power generated, household connection counts, or service quality. Those measures answer different questions.
How are the figures assembled?
The World Bank’s SDG metadata identifies the Global Electrification Database as the source, in the context of Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report. Nationally representative household surveys—including censuses—are the main source, alongside information collected from industry, national surveys, and international sources. The joint report custodians named in the metadata are the International Energy Agency, International Renewable Energy Agency, United Nations Statistics Division, World Bank, and World Health Organization.
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World Development Indicators (WDI) methodology notes say the database compiles household-survey data and, occasionally, census data. It also incorporates related data from SEDLAC, MNAPOV, and ECAPOV, which draw on similar surveys. WDI metadata reported that the database contained 1,375 surveys for 149 countries in 1990–2021 at the time of that analysis. That is a historical description, not a current survey count; it should not be confused with the indicator page’s displayed 1990–2024 coverage.
Are the values direct observations or estimates?
Not every country-year value is based on a direct survey observation. The SDG metadata explains that some countries lack underlying data points. In such cases, the World Bank describes estimating values using a weighted regional average. For many countries with only one to three observations, missing historical values are estimated with a model using region, country, and time variables.
The same metadata uses “Assumption” to mark an assumed universal-access value for countries classified as developed by the United Nations. When interpreting a country’s trend, check the observation’s status and notes before describing it as directly measured. A trend may combine observations, estimates, or assumptions.
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Does “access” mean reliable electricity?
No. A high access percentage—even one near 100%—does not establish that electricity is available 24 hours a day, dependable, affordable, sufficient in capacity, safe, or healthy. The World Bank’s 2021 guide notes that the original binary formulation of SDG 7.1.1 does not capture the full dimensions of electricity access, and that the indicator can remain unchanged even as its measurement methodology evolves.
For a fuller picture of household service, the guide describes the Multi-Tier Framework (MTF), a multidimensional approach that can identify challenges the binary access measure does not show. Use an appropriate MTF measure or other evidence for questions about service quality; do not treat the access percentage as a proxy for those dimensions.
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How should you interpret the percentage?
- For broad reach: It indicates the share of the population counted as having access.
- For country trends: Check country-year notes and data status, since values can include estimates or assumptions.
- For lived service conditions: Look for separate measures of reliability, availability, capacity, affordability, quality, formality, healthiness, and safety.
- For comparisons: Keep the binary population access percentage distinct from multidimensional service measurement such as the MTF.
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