Jobs in the global renewable energy industry are experiencing significant growth with the latest available data of IRENA (International Renewable Energy Agency) to speak of 11,500,000 jobs in 2019.
In particular, the seventh edition of Renewable Energy and Jobs – Annual Review emphasizes that the jobs in the solar industry hold the “lion’s share”, being 3.8 million out of a total of 11.5 million.
In addition, in 2019, 63% of the total is located in the Asian market, confirming its leading position in the development of renewable energy sources and the relevant market.
In second place in terms of the number of jobs comes the biofuels sector, reaching 2.5 million. In fact, according to the IRENA report, many of these jobs involve the agricultural supply chain in countries such as Brazil, Colombia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand, with labor-intensive activities.
The top of the “green employment” pyramid is completed by the hydroelectric and wind industry sectors with 2 million and 1.2 million jobs, respectively.
Commenting on the report, IRENA Director General Francesco La Camera said: “The adoption and integration of RES creates jobs and boosts local revenue in both developed and emerging energy markets.”
It is also interesting to note that jobs in the renewable energy sector show a better rate of integration and gender balance compared to the fossil fuel sector, with women holding 32% of total jobs in the RES industry. 21% in fossil fuels.
Finally, supplement the IRENA estimate in the recent publication of the Post-COVID Recovery Agenda, which states that an ambitious and targeted program could create up to 5.5 million more jobs over the next three years rather than a business-as method. -usual ”.
You can see the whole report here.
