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ENERGIA News Issue 2.1, February 1998

Meeting ENERGIA Members

Rose Mensah-Kutin
Senior Programme Officer, Technical Wing, Ministry of Energy and Mines, Ghana

Interviewed by Margaret Skutsch

Rose, first of all, please tell me a little about yourself and how you first got into energy planning.

I was born in a little village in Ghana but I always aspired to the highest form of education because my father expected it of me and encouraged me at all times. I obtained a BA (Hon.) in English at the University of Ghana, Legon, and went on to a graduate diploma course in Communications Studies at the same university.
My first professional job was as a journalist of Ghana's mass circulation newspaper The Daily Graphic and wrote on many socio-economic issues from 1980 to 1989. I was particularly interested in issues of women and was involved in the analysis and debates around women's equality with men. I attended the (UN) conference on women in Nairobi in 1985.
That year I also obtained a scholarship to pursue an MA programme at the Institute of Social Studies in the Netherlands, specialising in ‘women and development’, and became even more committed to social justice and gender equality in my country.
In 1990 I gave up journalism for a new job opening at the national Energy Board, and since then I have been co-ordinating a programme known as “The Social Impact Assessment Programme” which monitors and evaluates energy policies, programmes and projects.

That seems like an interesting shift: what made you make this move? Was it that you found energy problems really interesting and fundamental to welfare of people?

Actually, the reason I took up this job was because I wanted to do something different at the time. I felt I had contributed adequately to the issues of women through my journalistic practice and now I wanted space within the decision-making process itself to make some input. It was after I was engaged with the issues of energy as they relate to women that I found the area as interesting and useful to the needs of people as any discipline or area of work.

What do you see as the most pressing problem as regards women and energy?

I think that the most pressing problem in this area is the lack of adequate recognition and attention both in the discourses on energy, and in women and gender studies. The direct linkages between energy development and women's empowerment and gender equality does not seem to gain much importance as other topics such as health, education and employment. Energy continues to be seen as a gender-blind discipline and considered in technical and engineering terms basically. This limits the extent to which planning and policy making addresses the concerns of women in terms of participation in decision-making processes, capacity building and institutional strengthening, design and utilisation of end-use applications.
In my work which is essentially research based, I try to deal with some of these issues by using gender as a tool of analysis of energy policies, programmes and projects. An underlying question I try to answer is what are the implications of energy activities on different socio-economic groups in society i.e. women, men, children in different circumstances and situations. Are they beneficial or disadvantaging? How can the benefits be maximised and the limitations overcome?

Many people concerned with women and energy see this mainly in terms of provision of household energy. From what you say, I think you are looking at other forms of energy and their impact on women's lives. Could you give some examples of this?

Other forms of energy are Liquefied Petroleum Gas and Electricity. These are usually taken for granted and their impacts only drawn out in industrial terms but then there are issues like: when electricity becomes available, what decisions are made at the levels of the community and the household? In any case, do the policies that promote these energy options take note of their consequences on different socio-economic groups and gender relations? Are there any lessons for promoting LPG for use in educational institutions apart from the issue of cost-effectiveness for instance? The argument then is not to equate woodfuels with women but to identify the specific ways in which all types of energy sources affect women, men and the various socio-economic sectors in different ways.

It is really very interesting that you have been able to take this line in your work. Have there actually been any setbacks or difficulties for you?

I have had a lot of support in my work, especially in the early years of my employment in the Ministry. I had access to the resources to facilitate my work at the level of the Ministry. Among the communities that I work with as well, the people have always welcomed the participatory approach used in discussing issues and collecting information about the various energy resources that they utilise.
But I have also experienced some setbacks. There is still a lack of adequate appreciation of the social dimensions of energy activities and their gender implications. Therefore, in terms of actual utilisation of the information generated, there is a problem. Related to this is the fact that the sector continues to be male-dominated with decision-making mainly in the hands of males. The extent to which one can share one's experiences with others in the decision-making process is limited. Finally one feels isolated since there is very little contact with other people working on similar issues both at the continental and international levels, as very few meetings are held on the subject of women and energy. This limits the chances for networking and collaboration.

Do you have any plans for the future in your work?

I have had the chance of participating in some training programmes in energy planning and research methodology in institutions in Italy and the U.S respectively. At the moment I have plans to improve my understanding of energy and gender issues by pursing a programme on the subject in an institution of higher learning abroad.
At the practical level, I have been actively been involved in work at the NGO level and I have the intention of increasing my involvement in these activities such as offering training, research and other services. There is also a restructuring going on currently in the energy sector and I hope it will create more opportunities for me to contribute more meaningfully to the work of the sector.

Is there anything in particular that has influenced your thinking about women and energy?

Last year November, I was fortunate to be sponsored by the UNDP to participate in a meeting on ‘Women and Energy’ held in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. It was organised by the African Energy Programme (AEP) of the African Development Bank (ADB) in collaboration with the UNDP. I was extremely happy because it was the first time I was attending a conference on energy that had a continental and international character. Secondly and more importantly, the focus was on women and gender relations in the field of energy and it was extremely rewarding to know that the discourse on gender and women's advancement was being applied to energy issues. Prior to that meeting, I always felt isolated and out of touch because it seemed one was always saying different things from the dominant positions and views of the mainstream. For once, I felt I was being validated.
That is, one cannot think of energy and its development without looking at the implications on women and gender relations. I look forward to participating and contributing to other processes of consultation and networking on the issue in Africa and beyond in the future.

Finally, Rose: about combining a professional career with home and family, does this create problems for you, and how do you manage?

I have been married for 17 years and I have four children of ages: 14 - boy, 10 & 8 both girls and 2, a boy. My ability to do my professional work vis-à-vis my family commitments is a result of three interrelated factors: my own perception of who I am and what I am worth, my husband's world view and support from other family members and friends.
First of all, I always felt that I had something to contribute to society however small. I have therefore never seen family life as a disabling element but as one of the important ingredients of a fulfilled life. So I see my professional and family lives as linked and dependent on each other . Again I happen to be married to one of the most progressive of men in Africa today and he strongly believes that marriage and family life should never be the end of a woman's life. Rather, he feels that any individual should strive to achieve other things in life that give fulfilment in life. This attitude has helped me to forge ahead against all the odds. Finally, at the practical level, I receive a lot of support and help from my mother, sisters and cousins some of who live with me on a regular basis and help with the domestic work. My children are also growing up and they are also learning to do many things for themselves.

If you wish to know more about Rose's work, please contact her through the ENERGIA News Secretariat.