Source · Select Committees · International Development Committee
Recommendation 10
10
Accepted in Part
Require inclusive community participation, recognising marginalised groups, as a condition for UK energy funding
Recommendation
The Government should make inclusive community participation across all stages of design, governance, and implementation a condition of UK funding for energy access. This should involve recognising and resourcing communities, particularly marginalised groups, as decision-makers. (Recommendation, Paragraph 45)
Government Response Summary
The FCDO agrees, stating that current guidance already requires partners to demonstrate engagement with local stakeholders and they actively promote inclusive community participation. A 2025 study on locally-led action will inform future programming to ensure community voices are central to project design and delivery, indicating a commitment to strengthen these requirements further.
Government Response
Accepted in Part
HM Government
Accepted in Part
Government Response: Agree 21. The FCDO recognises that insufficient community engagement can undermine the effectiveness, sustainability, and equity of energy access projects. The FCDO promotes community engagement through inclusive models such as cooperatives, public-private partnerships, and locally governed projects. In our interventions, we place Gender, Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) principles at the centre of our approach, ensuring value for money in delivery, while addressing systemic barriers like financing gaps, regulatory hurdles, and infrastructure limitations. Our Centre of Expertise in Green Cities, Infrastructure and Energy has developed a GEDSI toolkit that has attracted extensive interest from partners and is being piloted in the energy sector in Zambia. 22. Programmes like TEA and MECS include a focus on local partnerships and inclusive design, for example supporting local researchers and innovators to participate in wider regional calls for proposals and build partnerships with UK and other international researchers and innovators. 23. The FCDO is also investing in locally led action and equitable partnerships, with a dedicated study commissioned in 2025 across the Ayrton Fund portfolio to identify best practices and gaps in community engagement. This work will inform future clean energy innovation programming and help ensure that community voices are central to project design and delivery. 24. We recognise the importance of inclusive community participation across all stages of design, governance, and implementation, and we actively promote these principles in our energy access programmes. Current FCDO guidance and delivery models encourage participatory approaches, including gender and social inclusion, and require partners to demonstrate engagement with local stakeholders.