Experts Stress Need To Address Issue Of Gender Disparity

News Desk

Islamabad: The energy policies in Pakistan have traditionally been blind to the differences in gender-wise energy consumption and the different impacts they have on genders. Women in rural areas and lower-income households are more vulnerable to a lack of access to clean energy, particularly in cooking, said World Bank Energy Specialist Sadia Qayyum.

Sadia Qayyum said that only 40 per cent of Pakistanis have access to clean cooking energy, and the disparity worsens based on income levels and the rural-urban divide.

She was speaking at seminar on ‘Women in Energy: Perspective on Clean Energy Transition held by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI).

SDPI Executive Director Dr Abid Qaiyum Suleri stated that women in rural areas are burdened with the collection of biomass for energy, and also suffer the health burden of respiratory diseases from the exposure to hazardous smoke.

Gender-segregated data is a key element in gender affirmative responses and ensuring gender mainstreaming in climate policies, as well as making substantial progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG5) that calls for gender equality., Dr Abid further added.

Renewable First Research and Media Coordinator Annam Lodhi stressed the importance of social media in raising consciousness of the women, climate and energy nexus. She said that robust engagement with the media can be crucial in raising awareness of the gender gap in access to energy and the participation of women in the energy sector.

Energy sector globally is male-dominated and women account for only 4.6 per cent of technical staff in the energy sector and 3.6 per cent in administrative positions, informed Women in Energy Founder Nameerah Hameed.

Nameerah suggested that women’s representation in country delegations must be increased to at least 50 per cent at Conference of the Parties (COP) to mainstream gender equality in leadership positions.

Indus Consortium and Arch Associates Manager Program Implementation Fiza Qureshi said that rural women are particularly vulnerable to energy poverty. She emphasised that for a feminist-just energy shift in Pakistan, solar-powered cooking appliances are a necessary component.

Fiza recommended that global financial organizations should think about debt to climate swaps and reallocate them to improve access for women affected by rural floods to electricity, education, and livelihoods.

Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) Senior Research Economist Afia Malik called for long-term integrated institutional and political measures to create a strong foundation of sustainable economic empowerment of women, especially in rural areas.

SDPI Visiting Research Fellow Dr Hina Aslam stressed on inclusivity to ensure a just and economically viable energy transition. She suggested that clean energy programs must also include transgender persons and not leave anyone behind for a just transition.