The Members of the Pan-African Parliament Women’s Caucus have called on Speakers of parliaments to strengthen parliamentary leadership by placing women’s rights and gender equality at the center of legislative, oversight, representative, and budgetary functions.
The Women’s Caucus made this statement on the occasion of this year’s Pan-African Women’s Day, celebrated on 31 July 2026.
The Caucus also paid tribute to the visionary African women who established the Pan-African Women’s Organization (PAWO) on 31 July 1962. Their courage, resilience, and unwavering commitment laid the foundation for advancing women’s leadership, dignity, equality, and participation in Africa’s liberation, development, and continental integration.
The Women’s Caucus declared: “We reaffirm our commitment to the aspirations of Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want, particularly the vision of an inclusive, prosperous, and peaceful Africa founded on equality, justice, democratic governance, and the full participation of women and girls in every sphere of society.”
They emphasized that International Women’s Day (8 March) and Pan-African Women’s Day (31 July) are complementary commemorations. While International Women’s Day situates Africa within the global movement for women’s rights, Pan-African Women’s Day provides the continent with a unique opportunity to celebrate the achievements of African women, reflect on Africa’s realities, and advance African-led solutions to the challenges and aspirations of women and girls.
The Caucus further recalled the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol) and the adoption of the African Union Convention on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (AU-CEVAWG) as historic milestones in strengthening Africa’s legal and policy framework for the protection, promotion, and empowerment of women and girls.
They noted that while these achievements deserve celebration, many African women and girls continue to face violence, discrimination, unequal opportunities, economic exclusion, conflict, displacement, and emerging threats such as technology-facilitated violence.
The Caucus reaffirmed its collective determination to translate continental commitments into meaningful action that improves the lives of women and girls throughout Africa. It also recognized the immense contributions of African women as legislators, peacebuilders, entrepreneurs, innovators, educators, mediators, community leaders, and drivers of Africa’s transformation.
Furthermore, the Women’s Caucus stressed that African women must not only be engaged on issues affecting women and girls but must also continue to shape Africa’s responses to peace and security, democratic governance, economic transformation, climate change, food security, digital transformation, artificial intelligence, and sustainable development.
Despite notable progress, they expressed concern over the continued prevalence of violence against women and girls across Africa, persistent barriers to women’s equal participation in political, economic, and public life, inadequate financing for gender equality programs and women’s parliamentary initiatives, and slow progress in the ratification, domestication, and implementation of African Union legal instruments.
To address these concerns, the Women’s Caucus called on Speakers of parliaments to strengthen parliamentary leadership by placing women’s rights and gender equality at the center of legislative, oversight, representative, and budgetary functions. They also urged Speakers to provide sustainable institutional and financial support to Women’s Caucuses, Gender Committees, and Gender Units to enable them to discharge their mandates effectively.
