EMPOWERING WOMEN AND POWERING THE FUTURE: A DYNAMIC PANEL DATA EVIDENCE ON HOW GENDER EQUALITY DRIVES GLOBAL ENERGY

Abstract

The urgent global challenge of climate change and environmental degradation has propelled the transition towards sustainable energy systems to the forefront of international development agendas. This study investigates the influence of women’s empowerment on the pace and effectiveness of energy transition across countries, employing dynamic panel data techniques to capture both short- and long-term effects while addressing endogeneity concerns. Using an explanatory research design and a balanced panel of developing countries observed over a multi-year period, the study relies on secondary data sourced from the World Development Indicators (World Bank), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Worldwide Governance Indicators, selected based on data availability and consistency over time. Using multidimensional indicators of female labor force participation, secondary education enrollment, political representation, and gender inequality, alongside critical control variables such as GDP per capita, urbanization, government energy expenditure, and institutional quality, the analysis reveals that enhanced gender equality significantly accelerates sustainable energy adoption. Specifically, the results indicate that improvements in female labor force participation and female secondary education enrollment exert strong and statistically significant positive effects on renewable energy adoption, while reductions in gender inequality are associated with lower carbon intensity, even after controlling for macroeconomic and institutional factors. The results further suggest that the effects of women’s empowerment are partly transmitted through improvements in institutional quality and human capital, consistent with the study’s theoretical framework. The study concludes that strengthening women’s economic, educational, and political empowerment can serve as an effective catalyst for accelerating energy transition in developing countries and recommends the systematic integration of gender-responsive interventions into national energy and climate policies to enhance the effectiveness and sustainability of the transition toward low-carbon energy systems.