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MEDIA ADVISORY

Writer: Fatima Daou
Fatima Daou
10 minutes ago
3 min read


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


AWLN GLOBAL WOMEN LEADERSHIP FORUM 2026

Reimagining Global Governance: Championing Women’s Leadership for Lasting Impact


INVITATION TO MEDIA REPRESENTATIVES


What:

NEW YORK, 26 SEPTEMBER 2026 - As world leaders converge on New York for the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly, the African Women Leaders Network (AWLN), in partnership with the African Union and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), will convene the second AWLN Global Women Leadership Forum.

The Forum will bring together Heads of State and Government, former Heads of State, senior African Union and United Nations leadership, Ministers, influential women political leaders, private-sector executives and investors, international financial institutions, development partners and emerging women leaders for a high-level conversation about one of the defining leadership questions of this moment:

Against a global backdrop of geopolitical uncertainty, democratic challenges, conflict, technological transformation and widening financing gaps, the Forum will examine how political leadership, institutional power, strategic partnerships, capital and intergenerational leadership can accelerate women’s influence in the decisions that will define the next decade.

This will not be a conventional sequence of speeches and panels.

Across a tightly curated programme, current and former political leaders, institutional decision-makers and private-sector leaders will move from political commitment to institutional action, from legacy to the next generation, and from dialogue to concrete commitments.


Why:

The question confronting global institutions is no longer simply whether women are represented.

It is whether women have the power, resources, networks, capital and institutional influence to shape consequential decisions.

The Forum places African women at the center of that conversation, not simply as participants in global governance, but as political leaders, executives, investors, institution-builders and decision-makers shaping Africa's and the world's future.

Media will have access to a rare concentration of perspectives spanning political leadership, multilateral institutions, private capital, financial institutions, and multiple generations of African women leaders, creating opportunities for reporting well beyond the formal programme.


WHAT MEDIA CAN EXPECT

The Forum will feature high-level political and institutional engagements; conversations exploring power, legacy and intergenerational leadership; strategic conversations with institutional partners; a private-sector leadership dialogue examining the role of influence, networks and capital; and a Ministerial and AWLN Leaders Plenary designed to surface concrete commitments for the next generation.

The conversations will draw on the leadership legacy and intergenerational vision at the heart of AWLN, a Network shaped by an eminent community of Elders and Pioneers that includes H.E. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, AWLN Patron, Former President of the Republic of Liberia and 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate; H.E. Samia Suluhu Hassan, President of the United Republic of Tanzania; H.E. Sahle-Work Zewde, Former President of Ethiopia; H.E. Joyce Banda, Former President of Malawi; H.E. Catherine Samba-Panza, Former President of the Central African Republic; Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Former Chairperson of the African Union Commission.

Their collective legacy reflects one of the Forum’s central ambitions: connecting generations of African women leaders and ensuring that decades of political experience, institution-building and advocacy continue to inform and strengthen the next generation of women’s leadership.

The programme will also include the AWLN Journey, a documentary-style account of the evolution of the Network, alongside the African Women in Action cinematic series highlighting African women exercising leadership and influence across the continent.

Media opportunities will include coverage of selected Forum sessions and opportunities to request interviews with participating leaders and key stakeholders, subject to confirmation and availability.


Who:

The Forum will convene:

  • Heads of State and Government and former Heads of State

  • Senior African Union and United Nations leadership

  • Ministers and women political leaders

  • AWLN Elders and established African women leaders

  • Private-sector executives and investors

  • International financial institutions and strategic partners

  • Emerging and next-generation women leaders


When:

Saturday, 26 September 2026

10:00 AM - 2:00 PM


Where:

320 Park Avenue, 35th Floor, New York, NY 10022


MEDIA ACCESS

Media representatives interested in attending the AWLN Global Women Leadership Forum 2026 are invited to register in advance.

Given the high-level nature of the convening, media access is subject to advance registration, security requirements, capacity and confirmation.

Confirmed media representatives should arrive at least 30 minutes before their designated access time and bring a valid government-issued photo ID matching their registration details.

Interview requests with participating leaders and key stakeholders should be submitted in advance and will be facilitated subject to availability, protocol and confirmation.


MEDIA REGISTRATION:


For registration, media inquiries and interview requests:


ABOUT AWLN

Established as a joint initiative of the African Union Commission and the United Nations, the African Women Leaders Network is a pan-African platform advancing women’s leadership in governance, peace and security, economic empowerment and sustainable development.



 
 
 

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