Women Leading Africa’s Future: ARFSD-11 Forum Sets Bold Agenda for Gender Equality
The outcomes of the High-Level Women Leaders’ Strategic Forum offer a blueprint for driving forward Africa’s gender equality agenda.
The 11th session of the Africa Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD-11), hosted under the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), was a critical milestone in Africa’s push toward inclusive development. A standout event during the Forum was the High-Level Women Leaders’ Strategic Forum, co-convened by UN Women and the Office of the Prime Minister of Uganda. Bringing together influential women leaders, policymakers, innovators, and grassroots advocates from East and Southern Africa, the forum emerged as a powerful platform to elevate the role of women in driving transformative, gender-responsive development across the continent.
Held against the backdrop of Africa’s twin agendas—Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—the gathering sent a strong and unified message: women's leadership is not only essential for achieving gender equality (SDG 5), but it is also a cornerstone for Africa’s social, economic, and environmental transformation.
Women at the Forefront of Africa’s Development Agenda
Throughout the forum, the discussions reinforced that women are pivotal agents of change who must be centered in decision-making processes at local, national, regional, and continental levels. Leaders exchanged ideas on how governance, public policy, and investment can be restructured to enable more inclusive and equitable outcomes.
Key highlights included powerful testimonies and strategic exchanges on the tangible benefits of increasing women's participation in leadership and economic systems. The event facilitated vibrant peer-learning sessions where women shared country-specific challenges and solutions, contributing to a regional knowledge base aimed at accelerating gender equality.
Innovative Programs for Economic Empowerment and Climate Resilience
UN Women showcased a series of groundbreaking programs that demonstrate the potential of innovation to economically empower women while addressing climate challenges. A central feature was the Climate Smart Agriculture initiatives, which aim to increase women’s engagement in agribusiness while boosting their resilience to climate shocks.
A particularly notable initiative presented was the Market Garden App—a tech-enabled tool designed to bridge the gap between women farmers and market opportunities. This digital innovation provides women with access to vital resources, market intelligence, and business support, unlocking new possibilities for income generation and agricultural scaling.
Dr. Julian Adyeri Omalla shared her experiences of working with grassroots women, emphasizing how economic empowerment leads to holistic life transformations. Her Adyeri Model, which has already empowered over 50,000 women, promotes gender-inclusive value chains and fosters gender-smart investments. Her work serves as a compelling example of what can be achieved when local knowledge and leadership are integrated into development programming.
Five Bold Calls to Action
The forum identified five priority areas that require urgent action and investment:
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Advancing Economic Justice: Ensuring equal access to financial services, business opportunities, and fair wages.
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Transforming the Care Economy: Recognizing, redistributing, and investing in unpaid care and domestic work to free up women’s time and energy for other pursuits.
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Expanding Decent Work: Creating secure, dignified, and well-paying jobs for women with strong labor protections.
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Bridging the Gender Digital Divide: Expanding access to digital tools, training, and infrastructure to ensure women are not left behind in the digital age.
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Strengthening Leadership and Governance: Promoting more women into positions of power and decision-making in both public and private sectors.
The Kampala Compact: A Game-Changer for Accountability
One of the most transformative outcomes of the forum was the introduction of the Kampala Compact, a framework aimed at guiding and monitoring progress on gender equality across Africa. This compact outlines commitments to:
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Women’s economic empowerment
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Inclusive governance
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Sustainable and gender-responsive development
The Compact is envisioned as a practical and action-oriented reference for policymakers, civil society, and development partners to track achievements, identify gaps, and hold institutions accountable.
Strategic Financing, Policy Reform, and Multisectoral Collaboration
The forum’s conclusion emphasized the necessity of systemic reforms and cross-sector partnerships. Concrete calls were made to:
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Mainstream gender into national and regional policies and budgets
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Remove barriers to finance and resources for women entrepreneurs
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Foster inclusive partnerships between governments, private sector, and civil society
A keynote by the Ambassador of the Netherlands underlined the importance of solidarity and global alliances in pushing the gender agenda forward. With the upcoming Beijing+30 anniversary on the horizon, leaders were urged to reflect on past progress and make ambitious, forward-looking commitments.
Looking Forward: A Blueprint for Gender-Inclusive Development
The outcomes of the High-Level Women Leaders’ Strategic Forum offer a blueprint for driving forward Africa’s gender equality agenda. The energy, ideas, and partnerships ignited during the session will play a crucial role in ensuring that women are not only beneficiaries but leaders of Africa’s development journey.
From climate resilience and digital inclusion to economic justice and governance reform, women across Africa are rising to shape a future that is just, inclusive, and sustainable. As this momentum builds, the Kampala Compact and the lessons from ARFSD-11 will serve as guiding lights for policymakers and practitioners alike.
By investing in women, reforming systems, and fostering collective leadership, Africa can unlock its greatest potential: its people.
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