The Shoktikonna Green Skills Summit 2025 convened more than 200 participants from across Bangladesh’s sustainable energy sector on Thursday (October 16), aiming to accelerate women’s leadership in the country’s just and inclusive green transition.
Organised under the Shoktikonna Leadership Cohort, the gathering linked education, industry and policy, with over 20 companies pledging more than 40 traineeships for women and engaging in mentorship, career dialogues and recruitment sessions.
Now in its third cohort, Shoktikonna has supported over 100 young women in STEM, many of whom have moved into roles in renewable energy, clean technology and environmental management. The current cohort is supported by the European Union in Bangladesh, German development cooperation and the World Bank, and implemented by GIZ Bangladesh and Devtale Partners.
The programme opened with welcome remarks from Stoyanka Stich, Coordinator of the Energy Cluster at GIZ Bangladesh, followed by a video message from Marjeta Jager, Deputy Director-General at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for International Partnerships.
An inaugural plenary brought together Michael Miller, Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Union to Bangladesh; Ulrich Kleppmann, Head of German Development Cooperation at the German Embassy in Dhaka; and Joint Secretary Mst Zohra Khatoon of the Power Division, who reaffirmed commitments to place gender equality at the core of Bangladesh’s sustainable energy transformation.
Subsequent sessions featured an exchange with Shoktikonna participants on pathways from technical training to careers; a high-level dialogue on green skills for inclusive growth and a just transition moderated by Grameen Shakti Managing Director Sohel Ahmed; and a panel on moving “from inclusion to impact” led by World Bank WePOWER expert Tanushree Bhowmik.
In a C-suite discussion on corporate leadership in the transition, Grameenphone’s Yasir Azman, Unilever Bangladesh’s Ruhul Quddus Khan and IDCOL’s Alamgir Morshed outlined how companies are integrating sustainability and gender equity into business strategy, bridging the gap between boardroom decisions and environmental action.
Across the day, industry representatives and development partners stressed aligning skills programmes with emerging needs in renewables and other green industries, underscoring that women’s participation is critical to innovation, resilience and community representation.
The organisers framed the summit as a bridge between aspiration and opportunity, advancing a pipeline of skilled women ready to lead Bangladesh’s green economy.
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