Renewable energy skill development and the role of local government for community empowerment

Evidence suggests that South Africa's renewable energy sector is constrained not by a shortage of policy intent but by a critical shortage of skilled people at the grassroots. Local governments are constitutionally positioned to address this gap. Unfortunately, previous research has established that they consistently fall short of this mandate due to fragmented implementation, limited technical capacity, and inadequate community engagement. To date, studies have focused more on national-level renewable energy policy without examining the specific role of municipalities in building community-level renewable energy skills. This study set out to investigate the strategic role of local government in addressing renewable energy skills shortages through targeted grassroots initiatives in South Africa. A qualitative approach was employed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven purposively selected stakeholders across South Africa's renewable energy ecosystem. Thematic analysis, facilitated by NVivo 14, generated four primary themes and seven sub-themes. The findings of this study suggest that while policy frameworks exist, their implementation remains fragmented. Capacity-building initiatives are insufficient and unevenly distributed. Partnerships between municipalities and academic and international institutions are underdeveloped. Community engagement remains peripheral rather than central to renewable energy skills planning. The study contributes original insights on aligning Sustainability Transition Theory with actionable, localised governance models for renewable energy skills development. It advances the empirical basis for SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy) implementation at the municipal level. It demonstrates that the multi-institutional partnerships required to close the renewable energy skills gap are themselves a direct expression of SDG 17 (partnerships for the goals). It recommends integrated, context-sensitive policy action, modular technical training programmes, and inclusive multi-stakeholder partnerships as essential to equipping communities for a sustainable energy future.