Regional Micro Hydro Power Project ENERGIA Africa Gender Mainstreaming in Energy Projects 2008-2011

Practical Action Southern Africa submitted a Gender Action Plan (GAP) for the Regional Micro Hydro Power Project. This is a 5-year project running from January 2008 to December 2012 that is being implemented by Practical Action Southern Africa with funding from the European Commission. ENERGIA provided e-coaching support on gender mainstreaming to the project, that specifically focussed on the Micro Hydro Power Project in Chipendeke. The Chipendeke Micro Hydro of 24 kW expects to benefit 3000 men and women directly and indirectly by providing access to electricity in households, the clinic, school, service centre and through battery charging.

In the GAP, the following gender goals for the project were identified:

  • To improve the welfare of rural women by enabling higher access to: home lighting during cooking, refrigeration, ironing, public information/entertainment through radio and TV, electricity for agricultural/food processing.
  • To contribute to women’s strategic needs by ensuring their access to improved health facilities through electric lighting and powered refrigeration at local clinics as well as the participation of women in the MHS management committees. 
  • To increase women’s productivity and income.

Gender mainstreaming activities included:

  • The integration of gender in the terms of reference, methodology and indicators (to monitor the gender goals) to be used for the project evaluation.
  • Conduct a gender-sensitive baseline survey.
  • Develop a gender action plan (GAP) to mainstream gender in the project planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation through a workshop with the project team.
  • Conduct a gender sensitization workshop for the MHS management committee members and for the women groups in the communities to build understanding for and acceptance of the gender mainstreaming activities.
  • To integrate the outcomes of the gender action plan in the user training workshops after the completion of the gender mainstreaming activities.

Key results

  • A total of 30 households were connected in Chipendeke with all households prioritizing energy for lighting and cooking.
  • Improved health care facilities especially for pregnant women who can now deliver at night.
  • More drugs can now be stored in the cold storage. The drugs include vaccination and specific drugs for pregnant women. 

Final Report e-coaching zimbabwe micro-hydro - Download