Catalysing Green Rural Job Creation with Decentralised Renewable Energies in West Africa

The report assesses the direct job creation potential of decentralised renewable energy (DRE) in Ghana and Senegal, finding that both countries could create over 20,000 direct jobs by 2030 under forward-leaning policy scenarios. It introduces an 'Employment Factor' to quantify jobs per kWp installed and highlights the role of DRE in formalising employment for women and youth in rural areas.

• Under a 'Forward-Leaning Policy Scenario', Ghana and Senegal could each create more than 20,000 direct jobs in their DRE sectors by 2030.
• In Ghana, DRE companies that participated in the study employ 2,511 people, with women making up 34% and youth under 25 making up 7% of the workforce.
• In Senegal, DRE companies responding to the survey employ approximately 1,500 people directly or via subcontractors, with 23% being women and 10% under 25 years old.
• The study identifies a significant disparity in job creation between different DRE technologies, noting that solar home systems (SHS) employ more people in direct jobs per kWp than clean energy mini-grids in both Ghana and Senegal.
• DRE provides a pathway to formalise employment in regions with high informality; in Senegal, 97% of companies operate in the informal sector, while in Ghana, 85% of the population is employed by MSMEs mainly in the informal sector.
• The report argues that DRE can catalyze a high volume of induced jobs through productive uses of energy, as seen in a Senegal case study where rural energy access and training led to a 70-fold increase in induced jobs.

APA

Alliance for Renewable Electrification (2023). Catalysing Green Rural Job Creation with Decentralised Renewable Energies in West Africa. https://www.renewelec.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Catalysing-Green-Rural-Job-Creation-with-DRE-in-West-Africa.pdf

Chicago

Alliance for Renewable Electrification. Catalysing Green Rural Job Creation with Decentralised Renewable Energies in West Africa. 2023. https://www.renewelec.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Catalysing-Green-Rural-Job-Creation-with-DRE-in-West-Africa.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Alliance for Renewable Electrification |title=Catalysing Green Rural Job Creation with Decentralised Renewable Energies in West Africa |date=October 2023 |url=https://www.renewelec.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Catalysing-Green-Rural-Job-Creation-with-DRE-in-West-Africa.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{allianceforrenewableelectrification2023catalysing, author = {{Alliance for Renewable Electrification}}, title = {{Catalysing Green Rural Job Creation with Decentralised Renewable Energies in West Africa}}, institution = {Alliance for Renewable Electrification}, year = {2023}, month = oct, url = {https://www.renewelec.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Catalysing-Green-Rural-Job-Creation-with-DRE-in-West-Africa.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }