Inclusion and community building
WeSEE had the privilege of participating in RENEW MENA's Third Regional Conference in Cairo from 9-11 December and engaged in a variety of activities such as panel discussions, Mentorship Cafe, breakout session to develop innovative energy solutions, field visit to Vodafone’s Innovation Lab among other networking and learning opportunities.
The conference was incredibly inspiring - not only because of the rich and thoughtful discussions (from AI and digital skills to leadership and real-world sector challenges), but also because of the strong sense of community and solidarity RENEW MENA has built. Seeing women leaders, practitioners, young professionals, and students come together so deliberately to uplift one another was both encouraging and motivating. The energy was palpable.
Opening remarks by World Bank senior leadership reinforced the importance of gender and energy within broader development priorities. The presence of sister networks, including WePower and WEN-Africa, further strengthened cross-regional solidarity and learning.
There is a lot we can learn from RENEW MENA as we continue to strengthen WeSEE in Europe and Central Asia: building a network of gendr champions in the energy sector, creating pathways from education to employment, elevating women’s leadership in the energy transition, and embedding gender within broader digital and economic transformations.
Grateful for the inspiration, the connections, and the momentum. A sincere thank you to the RENEW MENA team for the warm welcome and for giving WeSEE the opportunity to participate.