The Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) and SolarTaxi Ghana have formalised a new partnership aimed at building a pipeline of skilled young women ready to take up roles in Ghana’s growing green energy economy.

The two organisations signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to launch the Green Energy Technology Capacity Development Program (GET-CADEP), an ambitious initiative set to begin next year. At a brief ceremony to announce the collaboration, ACEP described the initiative as a critical intervention to ensure inclusivity in the country’s energy transition.

Speaking at the event, Mr. Kodzo Yaotse, Policy Lead for Petroleum and Conventional Energy at ACEP, explained that GET-CADEP was conceived to respond to a growing need for skilled professionals to drive the technologies shaping the future of energy.

“Through this program, we are partnering with industry leaders to build a capacity of young Ghanaian women in green energy technology, including e-mobility, solar, and battery and storage systems.”
Mr. Kodzo Yaotse, Policy Lead for Petroleum and Conventional Energy at ACEP

He emphasised that broadening access to green skills and green jobs for women is essential to ensuring a just and inclusive transition. “Through this program, we hope to enhance access for young women to green skills and employment in the green energy sector,” he noted.

He added that the programme aligns with Ghana’s broader sustainability goals, stating that it “supports Ghana’s just transition agenda by putting gender equity at the heart of labour development.”

Three-Year Target to Train 200 Women

ACEP expects GET-CADEP to reach at least 200 young women within its first three years. Mr. Yaotse noted that the initiative goes beyond technical instruction, incorporating mentorship, entrepreneurship support and exposure to real-world industry challenges.

“We also hope through this to bridge the gap between research and industry, testing inclusive training models that can be scaled nationwide.”
Mr. Kodzo Yaotse, Policy Lead for Petroleum and Conventional Energy at ACEP

He stressed that the programme is not simply an educational intervention but a structured pathway into employment and leadership.

“Today marks more than the unveiling of a program, it marks a commitment… to equip young Ghanaian women with the practical skills, technical knowledge, and professional pathways they need to thrive in the fast-growing world of green and clean energy technologies.”
Mr. Kodzo Yaotse, Policy Lead for Petroleum and Conventional Energy at ACEP

Mr. Yaotse said, “Their collaboration brings to life what we at ACEP believe deeply—that innovation thrives when policy meets practice.” Ongoing discussions with additional companies in the renewable and clean tech sectors are expected to lead to more partners joining the programme. “Our target is to onboard at least five industry partners,” he disclosed.

SolarTaxi Highlights E-Mobility as a Major Economic Catalyst

CEO of SolarTaxi Ghana, Mr. George Appiah, described the partnership as a “dream come true,” stressing that the e-mobility sector holds immense economic promise for Ghana and Africa.

According to him, the shift to electric vehicles must go beyond importing finished products, and instead position the continent to participate fully in the value chain.

“We see the growth of e-mobility in Ghana and Africa as a greater economic opportunity for us to participate in the value creation of the transition.”
Mr. George Appiah, CEO of SolarTaxi Ghana

He argued that the ongoing green transition should be viewed as a continental industrialisation opportunity. “We need to create jobs, we need to build our economy… We need to move away from that era where we are just consuming vehicles,” he stressed.

Mr. Appiah further explained that building local technical expertise, from design and assembly to repair and recycling is essential to capturing the full economic benefits of the e-mobility revolution.

“Let’s use this green evolution not just to clean up energy, but as an economic opportunity for us to partake in.”
Mr. George Appiah, CEO of SolarTaxi Ghana

He warned that Ghana risks benefiting from only a fraction of the industry’s potential if it fails to adopt the right policies and build a strong skills foundation.

The partnership with SolarTaxi, he added, exemplifies the importance of aligning policy with practical industry experience.

A New Model for Inclusive Green Industrialisation

GET-CADEP represents a growing recognition that Ghana’s energy transition must be both technologically forward-looking and socially inclusive.

By deliberately centering young women, ACEP and SolarTaxi aim to break structural barriers that have historically kept women out of the engineering and energy sectors.

“The future of energy is not only green, but also inclusive,” Mr. Yaotse said, adding that the young women selected for the programme “are the next engineers, innovators and entrepreneurs who will power Ghana’s transformation.”

The initiative signals a broader shift within Ghana’s clean energy landscape, one that blends policy, innovation, industry collaboration and gender empowerment to build a resilient workforce capable of shaping the technologies of tomorrow.