Deputy Minister Champions Women’s Leadership in SA’s Energy Future

Graham-Maré revealed that the Department of Electricity and Energy is currently reviewing its gender strategy, with the goal of making it more impactful and action-oriented.

The transformation of South Africa’s energy sector is not just a technical and economic shift—it’s also a social revolution. And Electricity and Energy Deputy Minister Samantha Graham-Maré is making sure that women are front and centre of this transformation.

Speaking at the recent Empowering Women in Energy breakfast, held as part of the third G20 Energy Transitions Working Group (ETWG) in the North West, Graham-Maré outlined a bold agenda to overhaul the sector’s gender strategy, broaden youth outreach, and catalyse a more inclusive energy workforce—from coal to green hydrogen.

Revisiting the Gender Strategy: What Works, What Doesn’t

Graham-Maré revealed that the Department of Electricity and Energy is currently reviewing its gender strategy, with the goal of making it more impactful and action-oriented. “It’s giving us an opportunity to look at what worked and what didn’t work in the past,” she said, adding that the department wants a strategy focused on removing persistent barriers while elevating women into leadership and technical roles across electricity, renewable energy, and emerging sectors like green hydrogen.

Globally, women remain vastly underrepresented in the energy industry. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), women make up less than 20% of the energy workforce worldwide and earn at least 15% less than men in the same roles.

To reverse this trend, Graham-Maré believes the change must begin with young girls—particularly those in rural communities—who often have no exposure to career opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

“There are girls in villages in South Africa that have never heard of nuclear science, that don’t even know jobs like this exist,” she said. “We have to find ways to reach them.”

Roadshows, Youth Strategy, and University Engagement

To bridge this awareness gap, the department will partner with Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and civil society organisations to launch roadshows at universities and colleges across the country. These events will aim to inspire students and demystify the sector’s opportunities, especially for women and youth feeling uncertain about post-graduation job prospects.

“We’re developing a youth strategy with a focus on women and youth, and making sure that they understand that there is space for them,” Graham-Maré said. This includes actively addressing demoralisation among young STEM students and empowering them with career visibility and mentorship.

Building the Future Workforce Through Industrialisation and Skills

But preparing future leaders is only part of the equation. Graham-Maré stressed the importance of ensuring the energy sector itself is growing and creating new jobs. That, she said, depends on the successful implementation of the Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)—South Africa’s blueprint for energy generation—and the South African Renewable Energy Masterplan.

The Masterplan focuses on two major pillars:

1. Industrialisation – building local manufacturing capacity to supply renewable energy projects and components domestically.

2. Service Sector Development – creating a support ecosystem around the renewable sector, including maintenance, logistics, and technical services.

A critical part of this plan is also skills development. “There are new skills required in the new industries, and we need to make sure people are ready for that,” the Deputy Minister said. The Just Energy Transition is central to this, aiming to reskill and upskill workers transitioning from the coal economy into green energy fields.

Green Hydrogen: A Fresh Start for Gender Inclusion

One of the most promising spaces for women in the energy sector, according to Graham-Maré, is green hydrogen—a relatively new technology and industry with minimal legacy biases.

“Green hydrogen is a sort of new development within the energy space. And because it didn’t exist before, women are not having to elbow their way in. It’s a space that’s opened up completely. Women are owning the green hydrogen space.”

This early-stage development of green hydrogen allows women to shape the narrative, set the norms, and lead without legacy barriers.

Celebrating Women’s Excellence in Energy

Reflecting on her own journey over the past year as a female leader in a traditionally male-dominated field, Graham-Maré said she has been inspired by the women already thriving in the sector.

“We are talking about women engineers. We’re talking about PhDs. The women in the energy space are absolutely mind-blowing,” she said.

The Deputy Minister praised the confidence and elegance of women professionals transforming the sector and emphasized that government has a duty to support them—not only by reviewing strategies but by delivering policies that result in real, structural change.

“There’s always room for improvement. But I can assure you, women are owning this energy space, and they’re doing it with class.”

A Feminised Energy Future

The Deputy Minister’s message is clear: the future of energy is female. And with the right policies, partnerships, and platforms in place, South Africa can become a leader in gender-inclusive energy development.

Her vision reaffirms that empowering women isn’t just a social imperative—it’s an economic necessity, essential to realising the transformational potential of the energy transition.