Women miss out on clean energy

The key findings show that most interaction with solar companies, from buying a system to getting training on how to fix it, was done by men.

Poverty and gender inequality are factors limiting the impact of sustainable energy on rural women in East Africa, a new research by energy experts, Ashden, has confirmed.

Ashden Chief Executive Harriet Lamb said the clean energy transition must take place in a way that improves lives of women. Every year, millions of people around the world connect to clean energy through solar home systems and microgrids.

But Ashden’s research into off-grid energy and gender dynamics, carried out in Tanzania from 2017 to 2019, found many families could not afford to power labour-saving appliances of benefit to women – and that account ownership generally lay with men.

The study involved 1,260 household surveys, 16 focus groups and 66 semi-structured interviews.

The project was funded by Wallace Global Fund, the IKEA Foundation and the UK’s Department for International Development, with support from Institute of Development Studies.

The key findings show that most interaction with solar companies, from buying a system to getting training on how to fix it, was done by men.

“For most women surveyed, access to solar had not created more free time but increased house chores. With many families restricted to limited amounts of energy, women were de-prioritising their own needs over those of other family members,” said Ms Lamb during the Clean Cooking Forum in Nairobi, last week.