How Female Entrepreneurs Can Light Up Rural Rwanda

Image credit: Sven Torfinn. Rwanda. This image is part of a series of pictures produced to illustrate the research “electricity’s impact on women’s empowerment”, conducted by ENERGIA and Hivos. Used With Permission

Just over 52% of households in Rwanda have access to some form of electricity. This access is not evenly distributed across Rwanda. In rural communities, where most Rwandans live, energy access rates are far lower. Furthermore, the country's geography severely limits the reach of Rwanda's electric grids.

This means Rwandans are increasingly turning to off-grid energy solutions, namely solar power.

My guest today, Rebecca Klege, is a Ghanian economist whose research focuses on the intersection of clean energy access and female entrepreneurship. She is a researcher at Environmental Research Policy Unit who is completing her PHD studies at the School of Economics, University of Cape Town in South Africa.

What makes Rebecca Klege's work so unique is that she flips a common study qu…