Transitions to renewable energy are a key element of energy security and are vital for low-carbon development. They also have important implications for people’s livelihoods and well-being. In 2024, at least 16.6-million people were directly or indirectly employed in the sector. The transition to renewable energy is expected to lead to the net creation of jobs, with solar photovoltaics (PV) leading this expansion.

Women are underrepresented in the solar sector and are more likely to be employed in lower-paid, non-technical and administrative positions than in technical, managerial or policy-making roles. This risks largely excluding women from the income- and employment-generating gains of a low-carbon, renewable energy future.

Boosting women’s participation in the solar sector could help reduce gender gaps in labour-market outcomes and enhance women’s economic empowerment, while also helping meet severe labour shortages in the renewable energy sector. Achieving this requires greater knowledge and insight into the barriers and opportunities for women to enter, remain and progress in the sector.

This brief synthesises key insights and evidence on the barriers and solutions to women’s underrepresentation in the solar PV sector, highlighting critical knowledge and action gaps that will be examined in complementary forthcoming primary research.

Report by the Overseas Development Institute