Powering Profit Through Women’s Participation: Inclusive Energy in Fragile Regions

Reliable electricity is foundational to economic growth, social stability, and quality of life, yet over 665 million people still lack access to it. Most of this need is concentrated in fragile settings, regions where conflict, political instability, and weak institutions undermine the delivery of basic services, such as electricity, and limit the capacity for long-term planning. In these environments, centralized power grids are often unreliable or damaged, making decentralized energy solutions, such as solar mini-grids and standalone solar panels paired with battery storage, a practical and scalable alternative. Beyond meeting critical development needs, renewable energy in these markets presents a compelling investment opportunity – especially due to its potential multiplier effect in facilitating women’s access to power. Electrification enables women to expand enterprises, increase incomes, and contribute more substantially to local economies, driving broader market growth. As the global decentralized energy market expands, fragile regions offer a distinct opportunity for private investors to generate strong financial returns, while advancing inclusive and sustainable development.

Decentralized Energy: A Scalable Solution

In Goma, a city in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a 1.3 megawatt solar hybrid mini-grid - now one of the largest off-grid systems in sub-Saharan Africa - is powering over 2,600 connections, including homes, schools, and small businesses. With 99% uptime, meaning the mini-grid is operational and delivering electricity 99% of the time, over 15,000 people have gained reliable access to electricity. A welder in the city, who previously relied on a noisy and expensive diesel generator, now pays a third less for energy and no longer faces disruptions due to fuel shortages. With access to reliable electricity, businesses are able to work longer hours and take on more clients, helping to grow their market reach and scale productivity.

Stories like this are becoming more common as emerging energy technologies expand access to electricity in fragile regions. In many of these areas, centralized power grids - large networks that transmit electricity from major power plants - are unreliable, having been damaged and in need of repair, or are too expensive to extend. Decentralized energy systems offer a more flexible and resilient alternative. These smaller local setups, specifically solar mini-grids and standalone solar panels paired with battery storage systems, can operate independently of a national grid, making them particularly well-suited to support underserved communities. 

Empowering Women Through Energy Access

Women face distinct and often compounded challenges due to energy insecurity. In many fragile settings, women are responsible for managing household energy needs, gathering firewood or other fuel sources, and are reliant on hazardous cooking stoves or kerosene lamps, which pose critical health and safety risks. 

Globally, over 2.3 billion people still rely on traditional biomass - organic materials such as wood, charcoal, and crop residues burned as fuel - for cooking and heating. The World Health Organization estimates that household air pollution from such fuels causes 3.2 million premature deaths each year, disproportionately affecting women and children. Moreover, in many rural areas, women spend up to 5 hours per day collecting fuel, limiting school attendance, opportunities for paid work, or engagement in other productive activities. Lack of reliable outdoor lighting also increases the risk of gender-based violence and women’s vulnerability to harassment or assault. 

Unreliable electricity access also affects women’s ability to operate businesses. According to the World Bank, eliminating barriers that limit women’s participation in the workforce could boost global GDP by more than 20%, effectively doubling the projected growth rate over the next decade. Such challenges also constrain state capacity to provide and scale public service infrastructure, including education and healthcare services. These overlapping constraints not only diminish personal income opportunity, but also reduce labor force participation and suppress women’s health and economic security. 

Decentralized energy systems help dismantle many of the structural barriers faced by women in fragile regions by providing consistent and affordable access to power. With electricity, women can extend business hours, expand services, and pursue new income-generating activities. More than just improving livelihoods, reliable energy access would support local economic participation and help foster the social cohesion needed to sustain development efforts in fragile settings.

Decentralized Energy Investment Reaps Rewards for Private Sector

For the private sector, decentralized energy systems offer a combination of high growth potential and strategic impact. In 2024, the global decentralized energy market was valued at approximately USD $49 billion and is projected to grow to USD $103 billion by 2034, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.7%. This growth is driven by falling renewable energy costs amidst rising demand, and the expansion of climate finance and blended capital models that are helping de-risk private investment. By contrast, between 2024 and 2031, the global centralized energy sector, encompassing traditional large-scale power generation and distribution, is estimated to grow at a CAGR of just 4.8%. This slower growth reflects the maturity of centralized energy systems and their limited flexibility in meeting rapidly evolving energy demands - factors that potentially position decentralized solutions as a more agile and attractive investment opportunity.

Fragile regions represent one of the most underserved yet potentially transformative segments of the decentralized energy market. Of the over 665 million people worldwide that lack reliable access to electricity, 86% of them live in countries classified as fragile by the OECD – regions marked by conflict, weak governance, and divided societies. Competition over scarce energy resources in these settings often further contributes to tensions, making reliable and equitable energy access critical for both development and peacebuilding. These outcomes are especially important for women, who are disproportionately affected by instability and stand to greatly benefit from the improved security, services, and economic opportunities that electricity access can help deliver.

Mitigating Capital Risk in Fragile Contexts

To attract private capital amid these challenges, development finance institutions are increasingly deploying innovative tools tailored to reduce the risks of investing in fragile contexts - regions where political instability, currency fluctuations, and uncertain demand can make project financing difficult to secure. In these environments, approaches like results-based financing, concessional loans, and blended finance models can offset risk and incentivize capital investment by offering developers steady, predictable revenue.

A compelling example of this approach is Peace Renewable Energy Credits (P-RECs) - a form of results-based financing designed to monetize the environmental and peacebuilding benefits of renewable energy projects. Project developers can sell P-RECs to companies or organizations seeking to meet sustainability targets and demonstrate social impact to shareholders and customers. Meanwhile, the revenue from the sale gives the project developer a guaranteed source of income, helping cover costs even if future local electricity sales are unstable. This predictable cash flow then lowers the project’s overall risk, making it easier for developers to attract additional financing from banks, development finance institutions, and other investors when operating in fragile regions.

In 2020, the 1.3 megawatt solar mini-grid in Goma, referenced earlier, became the pilot project for the world’s first P-REC issuance. Nuru, the Congolese developer operating the mini-grid, sold P-RECs to Microsoft. Revenue from the sale funded the installation of solar-powered streetlights in the Ndosho neighborhood, contributing to a heightened sense of safety and a more peaceful community - 39% of surveyed residents reported feeling safe after the installation, compared to just 13% in a nearby unlit area, with overall levels of peace in Ndosho being 9% higher than that in the adjacent neighborhood. For Microsoft, the purchase aligned with corporate sustainability goals, delivering both environmental and social impact. For Nuru, the P-RECs created an additional, reliable revenue stream tied to measurable community benefits, improving the long-term financial viability of the mini-grid. This model demonstrates how decentralized energy investments can simultaneously deliver meaningful impact for corporate buyers while reducing risk for developers, offering a scalable pathway for impact-driven investment in fragile regions.

While financial instruments are valuable, they are not without limitations; government and international finance ‘de-risking’ programs in fragile contexts have had varying degrees of success. Common pitfalls include insufficient local engagement, overly complex funding structures, and misaligned incentives, all of which can undermine project sustainability and investor confidence. For example, Germany’s Partnership for Prospects (P4P) initiative - launched to provide employment opportunities for refugees in the Middle East and North Africa - achieved limited long-term results despite substantial funding. An independent evaluation found that the program’s top-down structure and failure to meaningfully involve local stakeholders weakened community ownership and reduced trust, hindering its ability to deliver lasting impact. 

Such experiences underscore the importance of pairing financial tools with strategies that reflect local needs, especially in sectors like decentralized energy, where long-term project success depends on community acceptance and practical utility. Women in particular should be meaningfully included in the design, delivery, and management of these systems as they are often the primary users and managers of household energy, and furthermore play vital roles in local trust-building and community engagement. As community advocates, facilitators of dialogue, and cultural mediators, women are well-positioned to navigate the social dynamics that influence project acceptance. Their involvement can strengthen local legitimacy, improve uptake, and contribute to more durable, inclusive outcomes.

The Power of Gender-Inclusive Strategies

Research shows that gender-inclusive energy projects achieve better outcomes and lower investment risk. A World Bank report found that initiatives involving women experienced higher levels of community engagement and greater long-term sustainability. In fragile settings - where legitimacy, trust, and local ownership are essential - women’s participation acts as a stabilizing force, helping to reduce tensions and strengthen social cohesion. This is exemplified by Solar Sister, a social enterprise that trains and supports female entrepreneurs to distribute solar lanterns and clean cookstoves across off-grid communities in sub-Saharan Africa. Through this model, over 3.5 million people have gained energy access, while thousands of women have generated income and taken on leadership roles in their communities. 

Benoo offers another compelling example, enabling women in sub-Saharan Africa to operate small businesses through the use of solar-powered kiosks. These kiosks are compact, standalone units equipped with solar panels, batteries, and appliances like freezers and printers, allowing women to sell goods, offer services, and manage their operations digitally. With access to reliable electricity and a mobile app for sales and inventory, women entrepreneurs can grow their businesses, increase their income, and become drivers of local economic activity. In pilot projects, kiosks operated by women outperformed others by 30%. 

A final example is ENERGIA, a global network advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment in the energy sector. ENERGIA has supported more than 4,000 women entrepreneurs in delivering energy services, resulting in improved household energy access and strengthened local economies.

These initiatives are effective largely because they engage women as active participants, not just end users, in the design, delivery, and maintenance of energy systems. Women’s understanding of local needs, combined with their community ties, results in higher adoption rates, improved customer retention, and greater project durability as compared to conventional approaches. Their participation is especially critical in fragile contexts where energy insecurity compounds existing gender inequities - limiting women’s economic opportunities and exposing them to hazardous environmental conditions and heightened risks of violence. 

Involving women in energy access efforts helps address these imbalances while also contributing to more effective and sustainable implementation. Inclusive strategies tend to produce energy solutions that align more closely with real-world usage patterns, leading to greater relevance, adoption, and long-term impact. For investors, this can mean stronger community buy-in, lower implementation risk, and improved project resilience - key factors for success in fragile settings.

Pathways to Scalable Impact 

To strengthen the impact and sustainability of decentralized energy investments in fragile regions, private sector actors should consider adopting an approach that is inclusive of all relevant local stakeholders. One potential strategy is to partner with local organizations, especially those led by or involving women, to tap into community networks and better align project designs with community needs. Supporting gender-inclusive training programs, like those run by Solar Sister and ENERGIA, can also help build a pipeline of female entrepreneurs, technicians, and project managers, boosting local capacity and long-term viability. 

In parallel, investors can work with development finance institutions to support projects that leverage de-risking tools such as P-RECs. By generating an additional and predictable income stream for developers, P-RECs make renewable energy projects in high-risk settings more financially secure and therefore more attractive to investors. Project developers, often with support from development finance institutions or other funders, can also invest in monitoring and evaluation systems to track both financial performance and social outcomes. This ensures accountability and supports continuous improvement. Combined with the strategies above, these efforts can deliver scalable, resilient energy solutions that foster inclusive economic development.

Decentralized energy systems are redefining access to electricity in fragile regions, offering a pathway to economic empowerment and social stability. The rapid growth of this market, coupled with innovative financing and gender-inclusive strategies, presents a compelling opportunity for private investors to achieve both profit and impact. By prioritizing resilience, local engagement, and women’s participation, the private sector can unlock the transformative potential of renewable energy in some of the world’s most underserved regions. As the example of Goma illustrates, these investments can power homes and businesses while catalyzing economic empowerment, fostering more resilient, inclusive, and peaceful communities.

As a guest blog, the views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of Our Secure Future or any particular organization.