Integrating gender in transitions to renewable energy in the Lower Mekong Region

This briefing by the Stockholm Environment Institute examines the gender imbalances within the energy sector of the Lower Mekong Region (LMR). It argues that without gender-sensitive policies, the transition to renewable energy may reinforce existing inequalities, as women are under-represented in technical roles and often excluded from energy decision-making and benefits.

• The energy sector is heavily male-dominated globally and within the Lower Mekong Region, with women significantly under-represented in technical and leadership roles. In the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, all eight executive officers are men, and women make up only 23% of the staff, primarily in administrative positions.
• Women face systemic barriers to entering the science and technology sectors due to gender norms, limited access to capital, and educational disparities. In the Lao labour force, 33% of female employees have education to secondary school level or above, compared to 45% of male employees.
• Small-scale energy users, who are predominantly women, are often overlooked in centralized energy systems, and women's business ownership in energy and agriculture in Cambodia is less than 1%. This leads to energy insecurity, where women are disproportionately affected due to domestic obligations such as collecting fuelwood.
• Gender norms limit women's participation in energy decision-making and public consultations. For example, during the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the Truong Son hydropower project in Vietnam, social norms regarding public behaviour and weak Vietnamese language skills among ethnic minorities hindered women's ability to influence decisions.
• While some women lead renewable energy businesses—including the leader of Thailand's largest solar power operator and some of the 35 local developers in Vietnam—expansion is often limited by domestic obligations and a lack of resources for low-income women.
• National energy policies in the Lower Mekong Region frequently fail to integrate gender dimensions. Specifically, Laos' 8th Five-Year National Socio-economic Development Plan 2016-2020 and Cambodia's National Strategic Development Plan 2014-2018 do not mention gender equality or gender-responsive approaches in the context of energy development.

APA

Mortensen, S., & Boyland, M. (2019). Integrating gender in transitions to renewable energy in the Lower Mekong Region. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/gender-and-renewable-energy-sei-discussion-briefing.pdf

Chicago

Mortensen, Sofie, and Michael Boyland. Integrating gender in transitions to renewable energy in the Lower Mekong Region. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2019. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/gender-and-renewable-energy-sei-discussion-briefing.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Mortensen |first1=Sofie |last2=Boyland |first2=Michael |title=Integrating gender in transitions to renewable energy in the Lower Mekong Region |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=January 2019 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/gender-and-renewable-energy-sei-discussion-briefing.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{mortensen2019integrating, author = {Mortensen, Sofie and Boyland, Michael}, title = {{Integrating gender in transitions to renewable energy in the Lower Mekong Region}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2019}, month = jan, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/gender-and-renewable-energy-sei-discussion-briefing.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }