- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf – President of the Republic of Liberia
- Joyce Banda – President of the Republic of Malawi
- Catherine Samba-Panza – Interim President of the Central African Republic
There is progress here and there on the continent regarding women's rights . We must go much further to ensure greater gender equality in Africa. It is not just a matter of justice....When women take their rightful place at the negotiating table, in the parliament and in leadership positions across society, we can unleash Africa’s enormous potential..." UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
To learn more about women's political participation, please visit the following websites:
The bill, among others, proposes to amend Sections 48 and 49 of the Constitution to provide one special seat reserved exclusively for women in the Senate and House of Representatives for each state of the federation and the FCT.
As Uganda approaches its 2026 general elections, the nation faces a pressing and multifaceted challenge, the surge of gender focused disinformation.
Botswana Women Caucus in Politics (BWCP) has expressed concern over the low numbers of women contesting Parliamentary seats in the 2024 general elections and is hopeful that political party funding will change the fortune of female candidates to win more seats. In an interview on the acting president of BWCP, Rhoda Sekgororoane said if approved, the political party funding bill will attract more women candidates. She said one of the findings of a research conducted by Emang Basadi titled Mme Okae revealed that women are not contesting political office because of lack of funds, because the exercise is currently expensive.
ABANTU for Development, a gender and policy advocacy Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) has called for the passage of the Affirmative Action Bill before the 2024 general elections to boost women’s representation in governance structures.
YAOUNDE, CAMEROON —
Chad’s female leaders and activists have strongly condemned what they say is their negligible representation in President Mahamat Idriss Deby's first civilian government after a three-year transition from military rule. The women voiced their concerns during a meeting in Chad's capital, N'djamena, on Monday.
Tanzania, in keeping with global political trends, reserves 30% of seats in parliament for women. These so-called special seats were introduced with multiparty politics in 1992, in response to the low numbers of women elected to positions of power.
Formerly dominated by men, the Nigerian banking industry is gradually being overtaken by female banking gurus as the number of women leading the major banks in the country has increased in recent years.
Following two hurried weeks of campaigning, Senegal's delayed presidential election is set for this Sunday - with more than 7 million people registered to vote for a record 18 candidates.
Zimbabwe’s recent election has exposed weak gender policies both at the political party and governmental levels as women were sidelined despite the fact that they make up more than half of the 6.5 million electorate.
SWAKOPMUND – Minister of Gender Equality, Poverty Eradication and Social Welfare Doreen Sioka said tackling the under-representation of women in the National Council continues to be an ongoing battle.
The election management body of Liberia, the National Election Commission (NEC), has given reasons for the low number of women vying for political positions in the country.