KIT Royal Tropical Institute supported Climate Fund Managers (CFM) to integrate gender into their investment process. KIT conducted desk-based gender assessments of the renewable energy sector in 14 countries across African and Asia. Guided by this assessment, KIT worked with CFM to develop a gender integration action plan for CFM’s Climate Investor One financing facility.

KIT also delivered a gender awareness workshop for CFM staff and supported them to develop a gender policy. Research focused on the renewable energy sector in Burundi, Cameroon, Djibouti, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Nigeria, Philippines, Uganda, and Vietnam.

Addressing ‘energy poverty’ with renewable energy investments

Energy poverty is a critical challenge facing the international development community. Worldwide, billions of people have inadequate and unreliable access to basic energy services and rely on traditional bio-mass fuels. Moreover, while both poor women and men suffer from energy poverty, women are disproportionately affected.

Renewable energy investments have the potential to address energy poverty, particularly among women. But to do so, the investment process needs to be gender-responsible. That means that gendered risks and appropriate mitigation measures need to be identified to ensure that the investments will not harm women end-users, women workers or women community members.

KIT’s work included the following activities:

• The development of a gender action plan, which was incorporated into CFM’s funding proposal to the Green Climate Fund. This plan was based on the 14 country gender assessments.
• The design and delivery of a workshop to strengthen the awareness of CFM staff of gender integration principles and practices for investment processes and the workplace. The workshop covered the gendered nature of climate change and gendered risks and opportunities in renewable energy infrastructure development.
• The development of a CFM gender policy.