The 2025 IRENA report shows that women represent only 32% of the renewable energy workforce, and their participation in technical and managerial positions remains much lower. While these figures are slowly improving, they reflect persistent structural and cultural barriers that continue to limit women’s participation in the energy sector.
From my experience with government and policy design, one of the biggest obstacles is the lack of family-friendly business policies. According to UN Women, women and girls spend 16 billion hours every day in unpaid care work, 2.5 times more than men. This invisible and undervalued work limits women’s time and energy to continue advancing professionally.
In Panama, for example, in 2021, only 36% of women working in the energy sector continued with capacity building programs after gaining their current positions. Most of them made the difficult choice to prioritize family over professional development because the system did not provide structural support for balance.
The second major barrier is discouraging workplace practices, discriminatory environments, exclusion and even harassment. The second diagnosis of women’s equality in Panama’s energy sector found that almost 24% of women felt discriminated against when receiving awards, promotions or invitations to events, compared to just 4% of men. This means that discrimination is five times more common among women.
These barriers are not only unfair, they are also inefficient. They deprive our sector of essential talent that could accelerate the energy transition.
Building gender integration in energy policy
As a former Minister of Energy of Panama, I have seen firsthand that gender inclusion is not an afterthought, but a prerequisite for a just and successful energy transition.
One of the most powerful lessons from Panama’s journey is that science, technology, engineering and math are also women’s habitats. We need to clearly highlight what women are already contributing to accelerating the penetration of renewable energy.
We must also remember that the health of our planet is the foundation for any transformation. A truly sustainable energy transition must be people-oriented, just and rooted in the realities of local communities.
To make that vision a reality, countries must first establish a gender baseline, an honest picture of how institutions, companies and individuals behave and perceive equality. Women are not just engineers and policy makers; they are also users and influencers of energy technologies in civil society.
Institutional changes require commitment from the highest decision-making levels. Every actor in the energy sector must be trained in gender management and learn to identify their own biases. Inclusivity starts with self-awareness.
Designing partnerships that empower
Public-private partnerships (PPPs) are critical to expanding universal energy access, but can also become an engine of equity and empowerment if they are intentionally designed.
When access to energy is leveraged to empower women, it can transform entire communities. Governments and private companies must create opportunities for women in areas living without electricity, especially in conditions of energy poverty.
In public procurement, companies should be required as a condition of selection to ensure gender equality in future jobs in the energy sector. PPPs must include explicit commitments to gender equality and community empowerment in their statutes.
Energy investments should respond to women’s needs, offering clean cooking solutions, energy-efficient appliances and energy efficiency training to save time and reduce household costs. PPPs can also promote women’s inclusion in energy management through cooperatives that give women leadership and ownership, making energy more affordable, sustainable and locally managed.
Empowering women through the Solar Champions Program
One of the most rewarding experiences of my career was leading the Solar Champions training program, an initiative that enabled 85 Indigenous women to become certified rural solar installers.
These women, aged 18 to 55, lived in communities without electricity, often in poverty and with low levels of formal education. Over seven weeks and 280 hours of training, both theoretical and practical, they learned how to install and maintain insulated solar systems. The course was delivered in their native language and included sessions on women’s empowerment, personal finance and entrepreneurship.
Today, 25% of these graduates work for energy companies or as local installers, bringing light and opportunity to their communities. I am privileged to call them my colleagues and friends. They are proof that when we invest in women, we invest in progress.
Recognizing women as agents of change
Women play a central role in household and community energy management, but their contributions are often overlooked. To truly appreciate their role, we need to raise awareness and embed gender sensitivity at every stage of policy and project design.
Governments and companies should develop gender-sensitive initiatives and support women-led projects in off-grid and rural areas. These regions offer enormous potential for female talent to boost sustainable energy supply.
Governments should establish financing programs with preferential rates for gender-inclusive projects, promote women’s entrepreneurship in the energy sector and create national platforms to showcase women’s profiles and expertise.
Representation is important, visibility is important. When we make women’s contributions visible, we inspire others to follow and strengthen the collective fabric of equality.
A call to action for energy leaders
If I could send one message to energy leaders and policymakers in the Global South, it would be this:
The gender and energy dialogue has evolved. Women are not victims, but agents of change.
They are consumers, innovators, producers and decision makers who shape the sector every day. But inclusivity isn’t just about creating space for women; it’s about transforming attitudes, behavior and environments so that their ideas are valued, heard and implemented.
We need to show through data and results how women’s participation strengthens energy transition goals. And we must continue to communicate strategically to counter those who continue to underestimate the power of equality.
Equality is the energy of everyone
Gender equality is not a women’s issue; it is a global development imperative. We need male allies who understand that inclusion benefits everyone. Creativity and innovation thrive within diverse environments.
Equality fuels not only the energy transition, but also family well-being and climate resilience. By cultivating empathy among men and building trust in collaboration, we involve everyone in the fight against inequality.
Talent has no face, ethnicity or gender. The energy transition is our shared mission, and only by taking it with us all talent, we can win the climate battle.
Rosilena Lindo is a global energy and climate advisor, member of REN21 and member of the International Advisory Board of the Global Women’s Network for the Energy Transition (GWNET). She made history as Panama’s first female national energy minister and previously served as the country’s first national deputy energy minister. Rosilena is the author, co-author and editor of more than 15 national public energy policy instruments, including, among others, the Green Hydrogen Strategy, the Universal Access to Energy Plan, the Interconnected Grid System Innovation Strategy, the Energy Transition Communication Strategy and the Solar Water Heater Action Plan, all developed with a strong gender perspective and through broad, multi- and interdisciplinary collaborative processes. She served as Director of Climate Change at the Ministry of the Environment (2014–2017), where she led the development of Panama’s first Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement, as well as the National Climate Change Strategy and the REDD+ Program.
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