Further comment on draft South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (July 2023): Gender equality, gender justice and women participation

The Centre for Environmental Rights, on behalf of the Life after Coal Campaign, submits that the draft South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (SAREM) fails to sufficiently integrate gender justice. The submission highlights significant underrepresentation of women in South Africa's energy sectors—including only 14% in renewable energy and 21% in coal—and argues that without deliberate design and measurable targets, the transition will maintain existing inequalities. It recommends that SAREM explicitly elevate gender equality as a key outcome, implement conditional state support for women's employment, and provide dedicated financial and developmental support for women-owned businesses through mechanisms like the proposed Transformation Fund.

• Women are significantly underrepresented in South Africa's energy workforce: they account for 14% of employees in the renewable energy sector, 21% in the coal sector, and 31% of Eskom employees as of 2022.
• Despite low absolute numbers, women in the energy sector are often more educated than their male counterparts; for instance, 67% of women at Eskom hold post-matric qualifications compared to 49% of men.
• Women-owned businesses in the South African renewable energy sector have seen very low levels of expenditure, averaging 5% for construction and 6% for operations over the first four bid windows, far below the 40% target set by the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities.
• The draft SAREM is criticized for treating women's participation as a secondary issue, mentioning it only in the context of overall transformation or skills gaps rather than as a primary objective.
• The document identifies several risks to the implementation of gender strategies within the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE), including a lack of leadership commitment, insufficient financial resources, and a patriarchal society that does not recognize the value of gender equality.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (2023). Further comment on draft South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (July 2023): Gender equality, gender justice and women participation. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/LAC-Further-Comment-on-gender-aspects-of-SAREM-18-Aug-2023.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. Further comment on draft South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (July 2023): Gender equality, gender justice and women participation. 2023. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/LAC-Further-Comment-on-gender-aspects-of-SAREM-18-Aug-2023.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=Further comment on draft South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (July 2023): Gender equality, gender justice and women participation |date=18 August 2023 |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/LAC-Further-Comment-on-gender-aspects-of-SAREM-18-Aug-2023.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{centreforenvironmentalrights2023further, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{Further comment on draft South African Renewable Energy Masterplan (July 2023): Gender equality, gender justice and women participation}}, publisher = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, year = {2023}, month = aug, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/LAC-Further-Comment-on-gender-aspects-of-SAREM-18-Aug-2023.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }