As Africa navigates its energy transition, a growing body of evidence shows that gender inclusion is not a side conversation, it is central to unlocking resilience, innovation, and impact. Recognizing this, the African Development Bank (AfDB), in partnership with the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), has launched an ambitious new initiative aimed at accelerating gender-equitable energy access across the continent.
On June 30, 2025, AfDB officially unveiled its Gender and Renewable Energy Country Diagnostics, a series of country-specific reports developed under CIF’s Scaling Up Renewable Energy Program. These diagnostics explore how six African nations; Ghana, Liberia, Mali, Lesotho, Madagascar, and Malawi, can embed gender equity into every level of their national energy strategies, from investment planning and policy design to enterprise support and financing models.
The diagnostics are far more than academic assessments. They offer practical, tailored recommendations designed to increase women’s participation in Africa’s clean energy sector—particularly in leadership, entrepreneurship, and skilled labor. By identifying structural barriers and proposing inclusive financing solutions, the reports seek to shift how countries integrate gender into their energy agendas.
The virtual launch event brought together diverse voices from government agencies, civil society, private enterprises, and development institutions. At the opening, Al Hamndou Dorsouma, Manager of AfDB’s Climate Change and Green Growth department, emphasized that the energy transition must be rooted in inclusion to be truly transformative. “Gender equality is a source of serious innovation and sustainable growth,” he noted, calling for reforms that translate research into real-world policies, institutional coordination, and gender-responsive financing mechanisms.
His message was echoed by Nathalie Gahunga, Manager of AfDB’s Gender and Women Empowerment Division, who issued a powerful call to action during the event’s closing remarks. She urged stakeholders—from governments and NGOs to financiers and private sector players—to turn the data into “transformative investments, innovative programs, and inclusive policy reforms.” According to Gahunga, the diagnostics should mark the beginning of serious, structural engagement with the goal of unlocking women’s full participation in Africa’s green economy.
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A key highlight of the launch was the presentation of a consolidated action plan by Fewstancia Munyaradzi, Executive Director of Rand Sandton Consulting Group. Her roadmap focused on three key pillars: closing financing gaps for women-led clean energy ventures, building institutional capacity for gender-responsive energy governance, and embedding gender into project design and national energy frameworks.
Importantly, these diagnostics reflect the AfDB’s deeper, long-standing commitment to gender integration. Today, 100% of the Bank’s climate operations mainstream gender from design through implementation—a model that other African institutions are increasingly beginning to replicate. The diagnostics also build on earlier work with CIF in 2020, which supported gender-focused energy access initiatives in Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. That work laid the foundation for national-level engagement and underscored the importance of sex-disaggregated data, local context, and inclusive policy formulation.
What distinguishes this new phase is the actionable nature of the recommendations. From encouraging gender-responsive procurement and energy subsidies, to proposing financing tools that de-risk women-owned clean energy businesses, the diagnostics aim to turn policy goals into measurable progress. They also call for expanded technical training and mentorship programs, ensuring that women not only participate in the renewable energy sector but lead it.
As Africa scales up its renewable energy ambitions, the Gender and Renewable Energy Country Diagnostics serve as a timely guide for aligning sustainability with equity. With women still underrepresented in both energy access and energy leadership across the continent, this initiative affirms that closing gender gaps isn’t just fair—it’s fundamental to achieving Africa’s energy and climate goals.
In the words of the Bank’s leadership:
“The real work begins now.”
Access the full country diagnostics here: Gender and Renewable Energy Reports
