SARIC Rising Tide

T here’s an easygoing island energy in F i zna Yoosuf ’s voice. One can hear the waves and feel the warmth of the sun as she speaks. There is also a story—one that spans over a thousand islands in the Maldives. “I was always looking for a challenging course to complete after O and A levels at school,” she says with a smile. “I thought about studying wiring, an electrician’s course. I liked it more than I thought and learned a lot. That made me think about studying electrical engineering. So, with my family supporting the idea, I went to Malaysia for my diploma, and then my Bachelor in Electrical Engineering.” She said she did surprise her family at first because there weren’t very many women studying electrical engineering at the time. 20 21 island energy One day, Fizna noticed an opening for—and applied to—a job with the Energy Authority. She was the only women among the male applicants and counts herself fortunate that the all-male panel were very open to hiring a female engineer. Her role at the Energy Authority involves the development of regulations and guidelines that govern the energy sector in her country. This includes reviewing tariffs and working to improve the effectiveness of the grid across the country’s islands. All of this must be done in line with government mandates to provide access to affordable and reliable electricity services, increase energy security, and move toward a renewable energy-based electricity supply. Everything isageographicchallenge: each inhabited island has its own power house with varying levels of output and differing degrees of compliance. ISLAND ENERGY F I ZNA YOOS U F MA L D I VE S They didn’t think I would pull through! But it all worked out and I came back after my bachelor’s degree to finish an internship with one of the telecom companies here in Male.