Lessons from 2025 Africa Women Conference

Since its March 2018 inaugural edition at the NGO/CSW in New York, the AWC has become a vital platform dedicated to empowering women and girls across Africa.

Held at the Marriot Hotel, Accra, Ghana, from November 19th to 21st, 2025, and organised by the Helpline Social Support Initiative, a non-profit organisation based in Abuja, Nigeria, the conference brought together stakeholders, policymakers, experts, organisations, businesses, and passionate individuals to share ideas on issues affecting Africa especially its women aiming to inspire positive change and development across the continent.

Declaring the conference open on behalf of President John Dramani Mahama, Ghana’s Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey, urged African women to unite for shared progress.

Themed “Legacy Meets Innovation: Women Forging New Pathways for Africa’s Sustainable Development,” AWC convened leaders, development partners, innovators, scholars, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and young change-makers from Africa and the Diaspora to explore how African women can shape a sustainable future through legacy-building and innovation.

Nigeria’s Minister of Women Affairs, Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, speaking, called for continental solidarity and prayers for the safe return of recently abducted school girls in Nigeria.

Represented by the Director, Gender Studies, Nasarawa State University, Professor Hauwa Mainoma, Sulaiman-Ibrahim said that Nigerian women currently own 43% of MSMEs, noting that “when women and boys alike are included, communities flourish and social cohesion strengthens.”

The conference featured strategic conversations, policy dialogues, innovation showcases, and intergenerational mentorship, and the importance of education, digital skills, and providing opportunities for children to discover their talents was highlighted, as appeals were made for leaders to continue opening doors for women and girls.

Dr. Hajiya Ramatu Tijjani Aliyu, Nigeria’s former FCT Minister of State, in her address at the conference, said that despite the odds that are stacked against women, rather than being equal partners in the task of nation-building, they would continue to mobilize themselves to forge pathways to Africa’s sustainable development.

While asking whether women must bleed before they blossom, she said “though every so often, women’s body, looks, or sexuality are given more importance than her personhood, intelligence, or individuality, African women are not waiting for inclusion they are creating it. We are emphatically shattering the glass ceilings in technology, enterprise, industry and more.”

Dr. (Mrs.) Jumai Ahmadu, AWC Convener and Founder/President, Helpline Social Support Initiative, Abuja, in her speech, said women had “gathered not just as delegates, but as custodians of a legacy and architects of a continent waiting to be transformed. This year’s theme reminds us that the work of African women has always been the invisible engine powering our nations and in this era of technology and creativity, we must boldly chart new directions that amplify our impact.”

On her part, Dr. Hanna Louisa Bisiw-Kotei, Ghana’s Administrator, Minerals Development Fund (MDF) & National Women’s Organizer, NDC, said the role of the woman has therefore never been secondary, that it has always been essential.

“The presence and role of the woman completes the mission, advances the vision and brings balance to leadership. It is no wonder that, from the beginning of creation, God established a divine order for leadership and purpose. When God created man and entrusted him with a destiny to fulfil, He, God Almighty, in His infinite wisdom, fashioned a companion, a woman, to support, to strengthen and to aid the fulfilment of that purpose,” Dr. Hanna Louisa Bisiw-Kotei stated.

Some of the resolutions reached at the conference include promoting inclusive leadership by advocating affirmative action policies, gender quotas, and pathways that ensure more women occupy political, corporate, academic, and traditional leadership roles, and strengthening intergenerational collaboration by institutionalising mentorship networks linking emerging female leaders with experienced trailblazers.

The conference also resolved to collectively dismantle discriminatory laws and harmful cultural practices that impede women’s rights, expand women’s access to economic opportunities through credit, digital banking, cooperatives, and investment funds tailored specifically for women, and also integrate digital literacy and STEM education into community programmes, with a focus on rural and marginalised groups, and support women-centred innovations and innovation hubs that accelerate women-led enterprises.

Another significant recommendation adopted at AWC 2025 was the endorsement of the Pan Africa Women Film Village, a continental initiative dedicated to documenting, preserving, and amplifying African women’s stories through film, media, and digital storytelling. The Film Village is envisioned as a hub for training women and girls in scriptwriting, production, digital content creation, and documentary filmmaking, while also serving as a repository for African women’s experiences, histories, and achievements. Its adoption underscores the conference’s commitment to strengthening cultural preservation, promoting authentic narratives, and expanding the creative economy for women across the continent.

Among the recommendations from the communiqué issued at the conference end is a call on governments to enact and enforce gender-responsive laws, budgeting, and national development plans, increase funding for women-focused STEM programmes and digital transformation initiatives, and strengthen protections against gender-based violence, including within political and economic environments.

The conference also recommended that private sector should adopt gender-inclusive workplace policies, support women’s upward mobility through leadership pipelines, and partner with women-led enterprises, and traditional and religious institutions should champion positive cultural values that elevate women, discourage harmful customs, and collaborate with government and civil society to promote girls’ education and leadership.

AWC also recommended that women’s groups and networks should strengthen solidarity and cross-border cooperation to form stronger advocacy blocs across Africa, as well as amplify women’s stories, achievements, and innovations through media, storytelling, and research publications.

In conclusion, participants reaffirmed their commitment to building an Africa where legacy inspires innovation, and where women across generations play decisive roles in shaping a prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable future.

They called on all stakeholders to uphold these resolutions and take immediate steps to translate commitments into lasting impact.

The AWC gathering in Ghana will long be remembered as the turning point where African women resolved not only to break barriers but to build bridges; not only to demand inclusion but to design the future.