The International RE Agency (IRENA) notes that, globally, the adoption of renewable energy employed eleven million people, being solar PV the top employer. The report notes that women represent 32% of the RE workforce. The Bank has been actively supporting the GoBH to achieve a better understanding of its labor market challenges and specifically of skills demands through the "Skills for Current and Future Jobs in the Bahamas”. The labor force participation in The Bahamas is higher for men than for women of ages 15+ (82% and 68%, respectively) .

The gender segregation of labor in The Bahamas could be hindering women’s participation in the energy sector: only 3% of employed women work in the industrial sector, in comparison to 27% of employed men. 

This operation proposes to support employment and skills in the RE sector with active support to encourage women’s participation by:

• Providing livelihood training in services supply chain within the industry.
• Ensuring that the set-up and staffing of the REE is gender sensitive through HR policies that include targets for hiring wom en, equal pay for the same work, and job advertisements with gender elements.
• Conducting gender sensitive procurement processes, like giving bonus points in the selection process to contracting companies which have goals for hiring women, equal pay for the same work and/or gender-sensitive job advertisements.
• Providing prevention of sexual harassment and gender-based violence trainings for contracting companies and the Project Execution Unit (PEU).