What if the future of clean energy isn’t decided in Washington, Brussels, or Beijing, but in Lagos, Nairobi, and Addis Ababa? Are we underestimating how fast the Global South is leapfrogging fossil fuels? And what happens when clean energy becomes the cheapest, fastest path to development, not a climate sacrifice?

In this episode of Cleaning Up, Michael Liebreich is joined for a third time by Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and UN Special Representative for Sustainable Energy for All and Co-Chair of UN Energy. Together, they explore how Africa and the wider Global South are quietly reshaping the global energy transition, from rapid growth in solar, storage, mini-grids, and EVs to bold policy moves that many developed economies haven’t dared to make.

They dive into why energy access is about dignity, health, and gender equality; why finance, not technology, is the real bottleneck; and how local capital, data, and innovation could determine whether “Most of World” powers its future with clean energy or fossil fuels.

Leadership Circle:

Cleaning Up is supported by the Leadership Circle, and its founding members: Actis, Alcazar Energy, Davidson Kempner, EcoPragma Capital, EDP, Eurelectric, the Gilardini Foundation, KKR, National Grid, Octopus Energy, Quadrature Climate Foundation, Schneider Electric, SDCL and Wärtsilä. For more information on the Leadership Circle, please visit https://www.cleaningup.live.

Links and more:

Sustainable Energy For All: https://www.seforall.org
Damilola’s past appearances on Cleaning Up:
- https://youtu.be/TbN1Y1C0ido
- https://youtu.be/VcpNOmm1pMw
Ban Ki-moon on Cleaning Up: https://youtu.be/B14_MeRhfBw
The Sierra Leone Documentary: https://youtu.be/z-5QjSfy2SM
Clemens Calice on Cleaning Up: https://youtu.be/urmP7zN6n04
Alain Ebobissé on Cleaning Up: https://youtu.be/ISTvp0BQz3E

The World Decides: Clean Energy or Oil & Gas? | Ep243: Damilola Ogunbiyi

Cleaning Up: Leadership in an Age of Climate Change