FOR years, the energy sector has been male-centric and has come under increasing scrutiny for lagging behind other industries on gender parity. New research shows that women still occupy less than one-fifth of senior leadership spots. Progress has been made, but there is still work to be done. If the energy sector maintains its current pace, 50-50 gender parity will not be reached until 2058.

S&P Global's new report - #ChangePays in Energy - released on Monday to coincide with thousands of energy market participants convening in Singapore for the S&P Global Platts Asia Pacific Petroleum Conference (APPEC), showed that there are signs that gender diversity in the global energy sector is improving and has accelerated in the past 10 years. The number of female board members and C-level positions has nearly doubled since 2000 to reach 15 per cent and 13 per cent, respectively.

Geographically, there is significant variation across countries and regions when looking at female representation among the most senior leaders in energy companies - the C-suite, board members and senior managers.