Powering ahead OPPORTUNITES FOR SOUTH AFRICAN WOMEN ABOUND IN THE RENEWABLE ENERGY SECTOR.
BY NICOLE FORREST
In a time when climate change and the environmental effects of our actions are (or should be) at the forefront of everyone’s minds, the global coal industry is fast losing investment support. As outgoing Eskom CEO Phakami Hadebe said at this year’s African Utility Week in May, “If you want to build a coal power station in South Africa, no one will give you the money.” This is not ideal for a country that is heavily reliant on coal – not only for power production, but also for employment. Meagre funding, a beleagured energy utility and uncertainty around supply are the perfect ingredients for creating an energy crisis.
One that, as we have heard time and again over the past two years,has the potential to plunge our economy into darkness. Compounding the effects this would have on a struggling economy, are the massive problems such a crisis would create for women in our society. In its 2017 report Energizing Equality: The Importance of Integrating Gender Equality Principles in National Energy Policies and Frameworks, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) found that women are disproportionately and adversely affected by a lack of access to power. Women who do not have access to electricity are usually primarily responsible for obtaining or collecting biomass fuel. This is a time-consuming and often dangerous task, resulting in time to poverty and threats to their health and well-being. A viable strategy for overcoming all of these issues according to this report? Renewable energy.
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