Georgia • Gender-sensitive energy cooperatives in rural areas
In a fragile energy landscape marked by lack of infrastructure, high energy costs and extreme weather conditions, the NGO Women Engage for a Common Future, in cooperation with Clean Power Europe and other Georgian NGOs, has launched four inclusive energy cooperatives.
Eighty-two percent of the energy used by rural populations in Georgia (41% of the population) comes from firewood, the burning of which is a source of emissions and air pollution and the harvesting of which causes deforestation. Georgia’s energy situation is fragile: lack of infrastructure, high energy costs and extreme weather conditions. In 2016, the NGO Women Engage for a Common Future (WECF), in cooperation with Clean Power Europe and other Georgian NGOs launched four inclusive energy cooperatives. They combine mitigation objectives with the promotion of women’s empowerment in rural areas. These cooperatives facilitate access to clean and affordable energy for all, while aiming to create local replicable projects.