Even as it provides funding to help Guyana enhance its systems for the effective management of the oil sector, the World Bank says it wants to see women equally represented in the industry that is quite often male-dominated.
To ensure that this is carried out, a portion of the US$20M it approved for Guyana earlier this year will be dedicated to the cause. Guyana Standard understands that US$1M would be used to support critical training needs at key institutions with responsibility for oil and gas.
A minimum gender quota will be applied to make sure competent female staffers receive training from specialized courses and workshops that will allow them to pursue management/leadership positions. The institutions targeted will be the Department of Energy, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Ministry of Finance and the Guyana Revenue Authority.
The bank cited the findings of a September 2018 survey which underscores its push for women to have more opportunities in the sector. The survey that was conducted by the Government on its key institutions with responsibility for the oil and gas sector, shows that out of the 49 people currently working in the sector, 24 (49 percent) are women, four of which are in management positions and 20 in technical positions.
The Bank said that its project will no doubt seek to improve this state of affairs by enabling women to benefit from direct and indirect jobs created by oil and gas development operations, thus helping to address the gender gaps. It said it will also contribute to the development of gender-sensitive legislation while putting in place systems to monitor the increase in the number of women in leadership positions in key institutions over the years.
