A green economy can be defined by three characteristics: low carbon, socially inclusive and resource efficient. Focusing on renewable energy, sustainable agricultural practices, and opening new horizons for environmentally friendly industries, the green economy has the potential to serve as a powerful tool to boost economic growth in low-income countries. Using investment as a focal point, green economies target renewable energy such as solar, wind and hydrogen to increase employment and income as well as prevent biodiversity loss. By integrating environmentally sustainable practices into these key sectors, nations adopting a green economy can create jobs and alleviate long-term poverty.

Green jobs as a catalyst for economic opportunities

In many low-income countries, unemployment poverty is a widespread problem, especially in rural areas. In this case, the green economy presents itself as an opportunity to diversify labor markets and offer employment opportunities in areas not yet brought to mainstream industry. By expanding into sectors such as renewable energy, sustainable agriculture and waste management, green jobs create a stronger bond with society’s social sphere rather than just an environmental one.

The renewable energy sector alone could offer significant job creation potential, as the installation, operation and maintenance of solar energy systems, wind turbines and hydropower systems require qualified labor in both urban and rural communities. These jobs could provide stable income and improve the lives of many by reducing dependence on expensive alternatives such as imported fossil fuel-based energy, thereby increasing energy affordability on a larger scale. In the past decade, renewable energy employment has nearly doubled, reaching a whopping 13.7 million in 2022, up from a total of 7.3 million in 2012.

Sustainable agriculture

For many low-income economies, agriculture is the backbone of society. Smallholder farmers produce at least a third of the world’s food, but many of them continue to experience poverty due to escalating problems such as outdated farming methods, environmental degradation and poor yields. In Rwanda, projects such as Land Husbandry, Water Harvesting and Hillside Irrigation (LWH) have contributed positively to a wider socio-economic understanding of the need for agroforestry projects. LWH has improved crop yields and soil degradation, leading to an increase in incomes for smallholder farmers. This has also significantly alleviated poverty concerns and strengthened food security in local areas.

Thus, for the agricultural sector, green jobs can provide solutions to these problems by creating and encouraging sustainable agricultural practices that increase productivity and prevent environmental degradation. Investing time and effort in methods such as organic farming, agroforestry and soil conservation, as well as in educating small farmers on the value of these practices, is a step towards improving long-term soil fertility and crop yields.

Strengthens local economies

Growing interest in environmentally friendly industries provides another opportunity to reduce poverty in low-income countries, as these industries focus on sustainable production and construction. Activities like these are labor intensive and difficult to outsource, meaning they create local job opportunities.

With the right training, green industries require a wide range of skills that workers – from technicians and engineers to managers and urban planners – can develop to adapt to the demand for environmentally responsible products. An example of this is the World Bank’s Energy Efficiency Improvement in Commercial and Industrial Sectors (VEEIE) project based in Vietnam. This project works to help local factories adopt energy-efficient technologies to reduce costs and increase productivity. This project contributes to the creation of green jobs that have employed local workers to perform installation and maintenance related services in this industry.

Economic growth in low-income countries

Green jobs have already shown significant success in tackling unemployment-driven poverty. In Kenya, for example, solar energy projects such as the Green Mini-Grid Program have successfully used inward investment to create jobs in rural areas. By employing local workers who are responsible for installing, operating and maintaining the solar energy products, this initiative provides affordable access to energy as well as employment opportunities for those in need.

Green jobs have the potential to contribute significantly to economic growth in low-income countries by providing a wider range of economic opportunities at the local level. Sectors such as renewable energy, sustainable agriculture and environmentally friendly industries have the potential to contribute to long-term economic growth, job creation and help those living in poverty. With appropriate policies, education programs and investment in the green economy, low-income countries can stimulate local economies and play a central role in economic well-being, environmental conservation and poverty reduction.

– Mashal Aman

Mashal is based in Kyoto, Japan and focuses on Business and Technology for The Borgen Project.

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