PRESS RELEASE

AWLN Convenes High-Level Forum on Women’s Political Leadership

on the margins of UNGA 80

September 27th, 2025, New York | NY - On the margins of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA80), the African Women Leaders Network (AWLN), in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), African Union, with the support of UN Women and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) convened the Second Edition of the High-Level Forum on Women’s Political Leadership in Africa under the theme “Accelerating Women’s Leadership for Transformative Governance.”                                                                                                                     

This historic gathering, which coincided with the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and preceded the 25th years of the adoption of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. placed the advancement of women’s political leadership at the center of global discussions on governance, democracy, and sustainable development. It also built on the momentum of the Africa Facility to Support Women in Political Leadership, launched earlier this year in February at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa.

Despite progress across the continent, the representation of women in political and decision-making positions remains uneven and fragile. The Forum highlighted the urgent need to address systemic barriers to women’s participation, from limited access to political financing and data gaps, to persistent gender stereotypes and exclusionary political structures.

Participants collectively reaffirmed their commitment to scaling up women’s leadership in Africa, pledging to strengthen alliances and partnerships that broaden opportunities for women in governance. They highlighted the importance of exchanging best practices and replicable models from across the continent and beyond, while also advancing a data-driven approach through more robust collection and use of gender-disaggregated statistics. The Forum further underscored the need for clear follow-up actions to ensure outcomes are translated into national, regional, and continental processes, and concluded with the endorsement of a Call to Action clearly defining priorities to guide future advocacy and accountability efforts.

The forum brought together an impressive cross-section of stakeholders: Former Presidents, Government delegates, Ministers, parliamentarians, women political leaders, aspiring leaders, private sector, civil society organizations, academics, youth, and development partners.

Among the distinguished speakers were: 

• H.E. Sahle-Work Zewde, Former President of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia, 

• H.E. Ms. Amina J. Mohammed - Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations, 

• H.E. Damtien L. Tchintchibidja, Vice President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) 

• Hon. Lesego Chombo, Minister of Youth and Gender Affairs, Republic of Botswana, 

• H.E. Inès Bertille Nefer Voumbo Yalo Ingan, Minister of Women's Promotion and Integration into Development,  Republic of Congo

• H.E. Amb. Liberata Mulamula, AU Special Envoy on WPS and, AWLN Pioneer, 

• Ms. Diene Keita, UNFPA Executive Director, 

• Ms. Ahunna Eziakonwa, Assistant Administrator, Assistant Secretary General, and Director of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Africa,

• H.E. Mme Bineta Diop, AWLN Co-Convener

amongst other distinguished delegates and high-ranking officials from UN Member States, civil society, the private sector, and international organizations.

In March 2025, AWLN in partnership with UNDP announced a partnership with the Africa School of Governance to operationalize an Academy for Women in Politics, a comprehensive, systems-level program rooted in African realities to build women’s capacity, resilience, and influence across the continent.

By co-convening this Forum during UNGA 80, AWLN, reaffirmed its role as a leading continental and global platform for mobilizing women’s leadership, building partnerships, and shaping inclusive policies that will determine Africa’s future.

The Women Leaders called for  the High-Level Africa Women Leadership Forum to become an Annual AWLN and Partners signature event and a landing point for women leaders on the margins of UNGA.

About AWLN:

The African Women Leaders' Network, established in 2017, serves as a continental platform to galvanize women’s leadership towards lasting peace and sustainable development in all sectors and at all levels, building on, and working with, existing women networks with the support of the African Union and the United Nations. The Network builds on African women’s leadership to increase women’s participation in decision-making through peer learning and mentoring, enhanced solidarity, advocacy and capacity-building among other strategies.

For further information or to engage with the AWLN and its Diaspora, please contact the AWLN Secretariat at awlnetwork2017@gmail.com.