1. A high-level convening space
AWPLS brings together heads of state, parliamentarians, cabinet ministers, party executives, and senior technocrats to deliberate on governance challenges and chart collective responses.
Loading page
African Women Political Leadership Summit (AWPLS)
AWPLS
A strategic platform for women’s political leadership in Africa
The African Women Political Leadership Summit (AWPLS) brings together women in and around political life to share evidence, build skills, and strengthen how parties and institutions govern. Programme details, dates, and registration will be announced here.
AWPLS is a strategic platform for action that links senior-level deliberation to concrete policy output, research, institutional reform, and economic empowerment. It serves women who lead and seek to lead, institutions that shape leadership conditions, and partners who invest in making that leadership possible.
Secure your spot at AWPLS 2026
Register now to join high-level dialogues, ministerial roundtables, and continental leadership partnerships.
Register Now
What AWPLS Is
2. A platform for redefining leadership
AWPLS reframes women's authority in politics as central to democratic legitimacy and economic transformation.
3. A research and policy production body
The Summit generates gender-disaggregated research and policy briefs to inform the African Union, national governments, RECs, and development partners.
4. A leadership development ecosystem
Through fellowships, leadership academies, mentorship networks, and peer learning programmes, AWPLS aims to train and mentor more than 2,000 women leaders by 2030.
5. An economic empowerment mechanism
Targets
- 2,000+ women leaders trained by 2030
- 54 African Union member states engaged
- 3 core pillars: policy, leadership, economy
About the 2026 Africa Women Political Leadership Summit
Under the theme “Women in Power: Political Leadership for Africa's Economic Transformation”, AWPLS 2026 is designed as a high-impact, action-oriented convening that moves beyond dialogue to deliver concrete policy commitments, institutional frameworks, and transformative partnerships.
The 2026 edition, scheduled for November 2026, builds on the inaugural Accra summit and positions Africa to lead the global conversation on women's political leadership and economic governance.
What AWPLS 2026 Will Deliver
- Establish a High-Level Advisory Council to strengthen women's leadership capacity in governance, economic policy, fiscal strategy, and industrial development.
- Forge an Intergenerational Leadership Compact bridging emerging and established women leaders across Africa.
- Adopt the Addis Ababa Declaration on Women's Political Leadership for Africa's Economic Transformation.
- Launch the African Women Leadership and Transformation Fund to sustain long-term initiatives beyond the Summit.
- Convene Ministerial Roundtables and Expert Policy Dialogues on inclusive governance, electoral reform, and accountability.
- Host the AWPLS Leadership Excellence Awards & Gala Night celebrating trailblazing women in governance.
- Produce the AWPLS 2026 Policy Brief as a continental reference document on women’s leadership in economic governance.
Secure your spot at AWPLS 2026
Join leaders, policymakers, and partners shaping Africa’s future.