Accra: The African Women Leaders Network (AWLN), Ghana Chapter, has joined women across the continent and the diaspora in celebrating the 2025 African Women's Day, marking the enduring strength, resilience, and leadership of African women.
According to Ghana News Agency, the theme for this year's celebration, 'Rooted in Greatness: Celebrating Women of African Descent,' invites all to reflect not only on the rich heritage but also on the extraordinary contributions of African women past and present in shaping societies. AWLN, in a statement signed by Dr. Charity Binka, the President of AWLN Ghana Chapter, called for a loud unified action for justice, equity, and transformative leadership to advance the cause of leadership.
In 2024, the AWLN Ghana Chapter marked the Day with a Maiden Awards Ceremony on the theme 'One Vision, Many Voices: Celebrating our Gender Champions,' aimed to recognize and celebrate outstanding gender champions to reinforce the importance of gender diversity and inclusion. A total of 22 trailblazing individuals, both women and men, were recognized for their efforts in promoting gender equality and women's leadership in their disciplines.
The statement highlighted this year's celebration as especially meaningful, calling on all to honor the greatness deeply embedded in the African woman's identity. The roles played by women of African descent in politics, education, agriculture, business, health, the arts, and community development continue to transform lives and redefine leadership in both visible and quiet ways.
As a Network committed to advancing women's leadership, AWLN Ghana recognized both the victories and the unfinished work, noting that while African women are rising, they continue to face unequal access to resources, underrepresentation in decision-making spaces, and systemic barriers to economic and social mobility. Ghana made history by electing its first female Vice President in the 2024 elections. However, the representation of women at all levels of decision-making remains very low, the statement said.
'AWLN Ghana, therefore, sees the African Women's Day as not just a ceremonial event, but a catalyst for reflection, recommitment, and action,' the statement affirmed. For women in Ghana, it affirmed their rightful place in the country's development and aligned powerfully with the goals of the Affirmative Action Act, which sought to create a just society where women and men participate equally in shaping the nation's future.
AWLN looked forward to the full implementation of the Affirmative Action Act in the allocation of resources and appointments to decision-making bodies to reflect gender balance in accordance with the law. The statement also called on private sector actors to promote workplace policies that support gender diversity and provide opportunities for women's advancement while appealing to traditional and religious leaders to challenge harmful norms which worked to women's disadvantage.
AWLN Ghana appealed to traditional and religious leaders to use their influence to challenge harmful norms and champion the value of women's leadership in communities. It would continue to recognize the role of civil society and the media in keeping the spotlight on progress, exposing resistance or inaction, and amplifying the voices of women and girls.
