Project Spotlight: Clean Cooking in Somalia  

A daily struggle and a simple solution 

In the villages of Somalia, the smell of burning charcoal fills the air. Smoke curls from kitchens into small homes where children cough and their eyes sting. For nearly 96 percent of households, this is daily life. Cooking is slow, fuel is expensive, and women and children spend hours gathering wood and charcoal, often walking long distances under the harsh sun. 

Charcoal is one of Somalia’s biggest exports, but its production is unsustainable and very expensive. Between 2000 and 2017, Somalia lost over 205 million trees, driven by conflict, drought and land degradation, releasing about 5 million tonnes of CO₂ and leaving its communities more vulnerable to climate and health crises.   

Inefficient cooking fuels are part of a global challenge affecting 2.3 billion people, deepening poverty and limiting opportunities, with women and children disproportionately affected. An inefficient stove can cost a family as much as USD $50 a month in expenses and expose families to harmful fumes that lead to respiratory illness.  

The solution at work 

Gold Standard Marketplace project, Efficient and Clean Cooking for households in Somalia brings the Jikokoa charcoal stove from BURN to households across Somalia. The stove is simple but powerful: it cuts fuel use by up to 50 percent, reduces indoor smoke by up to 80 percent, and saves families money that would otherwise vanish on fuel.  

Carbon finance enables the project to reach households that could not afford stoves through traditional pricing. Every stove comes with training and support from local BURN networks, ensuring it is used safely and effectively. Through rigorous Gold Standard certification and monitoring, the project combines climate action, improved health, and economic opportunity in one efficient cookstove. 

Stories from the ground 

Before receiving a Jikokoa stove, Hamda, a mother, spent at least half an hour every day lighting her traditional stove. In the process, her small kitchen filled with smoke, making her children cough and leaving her to cook for hours with frequent headaches.  

Now with a Jikokoa stove, Hamda cooks faster, with far less fuel and far less emissions. She spends more time with her children and has invested in running a small food stall that helps support her family.  "Smoke from the traditional stove gave me headaches. I bought Jikokoa to see if it would stop hurting. Jikokoa is different," she says. 

Peter Scott, BURN CEO explains, "Each stove we produce is a catalyst for progress, empowering households to save time and money, all the while delivering clean energy for all users. It's not just about the cook stove; but the profound impact we're making on households and the planet." 

How the project works 

The initiative goes beyond just the distribution of cookstoves. By working with local networks and community leaders, it ensures stoves reach the households that need them most. The project provides hands-on training and fosters small businesses around stove maintenance and fuel-efficient cooking. 

Monitoring follows Gold Standard measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) protocols, using robust data to track emissions reductions, social impact, and health benefits. This ensures that every stove delivered is accounted for, and every benefit measured. 

Why this matters 

For many in Somalia, clean cooking has been a missing link in health, development, and climate strategies. This project proves that even a small intervention like this efficient charcoal stove can transform lives, protect forests, and mitigate climate change when paired with credible carbon finance and strong community engagement. Every stove tells a story, and you can be part of it. Support this project to deliver clean cooking to Somali households, improving health, protecting forests and advancing key SDGs. Help women and children breathe easier, save trees, reduce carbon emissions and strengthen livelihoods. Each stove placed in a home creates genuine impact for people and nature.  

About BURN

BURN is Africa’s leading cookstove company, designing, manufacturing and distributing high efficiency cookstoves since 2013. To date, we have distributed over 5 million clean cookstoves across Africa, reaching more than 27 million people in 12 countries. 

Through our integrated carbon value chain, which includes in-house monitoring, verification, and credit issuance, we ensure transparency, reliability, and measurable climate outcomes. Collectively, BURN’s cookstoves have helped avoid more than 50 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions to date.