Abuja, Nigeria 31 July 2026 – Ministers, parliamentarians, political party leaders and women’s networks from across West Africa today adopted the Abuja Regional Action Agenda, setting out concrete, time-bound steps to advance the vision embodied in the Presidential Declaration on Advancing Gender Parity in Political Representation, adopted by the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government.

The Agenda was adopted at the close of the West Africa Women's Political Leadership Forum, convened in Abuja on 30-31 July 2026 under the theme "Accelerating Women's Political Participation and Leadership in West Africa: From Commitment to Action" by the ECOWAS Commission, the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development of the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the African Union, the African Women Leaders Network (AWLN) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Women hold 18.4 percent of parliamentary seats across West Africa, the lowest share of any region on the continent. Representation is even lower in executive positions and political party leadership.

The Forum was the first regional convening since ECOWAS Heads of State and Government adopted the Declaration on Advancing Gender Parity in Political Representation in the ECOWAS Region at the 69th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, held in Freetown, Sierra Leone on 19 July 2026. Conceived as a legacy initiative of the Community's fiftieth anniversary, the Declaration expresses the commitment of Member States to work progressively towards full gender parity in elective positions by 2035.

The Declaration calls on Member States to strengthen the constitutional, legal and policy frameworks that enable women's political participation and leadership. It encourages political parties to reform their candidate nomination processes, internal structures and leadership practices so that women can genuinely compete for office. It calls for greater investment in leadership development, mentorship and networks of support for women seeking public office, and recognizes political financing as a barrier, calling for measures that improve women's access to campaign resources. It further emphasizes the need to address restrictive social norms through education, advocacy and engagement with civil society, academia and the media, and assigns the ECOWAS Commission a central role in supporting implementation through regional coordination, technical assistance, peer learning and the monitoring of progress.

“The Declaration is poised to stand as an enduring legacy of ECOWAS at Fifty and as an important foundation for the Community we are building under Vision 2050: an ECOWAS of the people, of all our people,” said H.E. Mme Damtien L. Tchintchibidja, Vice President of the ECOWAS Commission, in her keynote address. “History seldom remembers those who merely recognised the need for change; instead, it remembers those who had the courage to make it happen. The ECOWAS Heads of State and Government have given decisive impetus to that change and created a strong foundation upon which our region can now build,” she added.

“Women's political leadership is no longer a matter of fairness to women. For me, it is a matter of competence for nations. This is because a democracy that governs with half its talent is not simply unjust. It is underperforming,” said H.E. Hon. Imaan Sulaiman- Ibrahim, Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

"Africa has no shortage of women with the ability, ambition and commitment to lead," said Ms Ahunna Eziakonwa, UN Assistant Secretary-General, UNDP Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa, in a keynote video message to the Forum. “Our task is not to ask women to adapt to unequal political systems, but to transform those systems.”

Addressing the women leaders gathered in Abuja, Dr Jide Okeke, Director of UNDP's Regional Programme for Africa, said: “You are not the problem to be solved. You are the evidence that the problem is solvable. The question is not whether women can govern in West Africa. It is how much longer this region intends to govern without them.”

"Gender equality is not merely a social aspiration; it is a democratic imperative and a strategic investment for peace, prosperity and resilient institutions," said H.E. Mme Bineta Diop, Co-Convener of the African Women Leaders Network, in a statement delivered on her behalf by Mme Marie Louise Mwange, AWLN Global Co-Chair.

The Abuja Regional Action Agenda sets out nine commitments to give effect to the Declaration. These include translating it into appropriate laws based on National realities, adequately financed programmes and measurable targets; addressing the monetization and escalating cost of politics that systematically disadvantage women; guaranteeing women's safety and dignity in political life, with zero tolerance for physical, psychological, sexual and technology-facilitated violence; prioritizing young women and women facing intersecting forms of exclusion; supporting women's meaningful participation in political transitions, including interim institutions and constitutional review bodies; building a cross-party and cross-generational network of women leaders across the region; promoting the engagement of men and boys as allies in advancing gender parity; and establishing regional accountability for results, supported by comparable data and reporting.

The Forum was supported by UNDP through the Africa Facility to Support Inclusive Transitions (AFSIT) and the Africa Facility for Women in Political Leadership, established in partnership with the African Union Commission and AWLN to strengthen the ecosystem women need to enter political life, remain in leadership and exercise meaningful influence. The Facility's flagship African Academy for Women in Political Leadership launches in Kigali from 3 – 7 August 2026.

The full text of the Abuja Regional Action Agenda is available here.

For further information or media inquiries, please contact:

• Joel Ahofodji, Director of Communications, ECOWAS Commission | jahofodji@ecowas.int
• Fatima Daou, Communications Officer, AWLN | communication@awlnafrica.net; alwnetwork2017@gmail.com
• Ugochukwu Kingsley Ahuchaogu, Regional Communications and External Engagement Specialist, Regional Programme for Africa, UNDP Regional Service Centre for Africa | ugochukwu.kingsley@undp.org

Notes to editors

About the Forum

The West Africa Women's Political Leadership Forum brought together 120 participants from across ECOWAS Member States, including senior government officials, women political leaders and parliamentarians, representatives of ECOWAS, the African Union, and AWLN, women serving in transitional governance bodies, electoral management bodies, civil society organizations, the media, academia and development partners.

About the ECOWAS Commission

The Commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS Commission) is the executive institution of ECOWAS, established in 2007 from the former ECOWAS Secretariat to implement the vision and objectives of the Community. ECOWAS, founded by the Treaty of Lagos in 1975 and revised in 1993, today brings together 12 Member States, home to more than 370 million people. Headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria, and headed by a President supported by a Vice President and five Commissioners, the Commission executes the decisions of the Authority of Heads of State and Government, promotes Community development programmes and works to deepen regional integration under ECOWAS Vision 2050: “an ECOWAS of the People: Peace and Prosperity for All”.

Learn more at www.ecowas.int

About the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development of the Federal Republic of Nigeria

The Ministry of Women AUairs and Social Development provides strategic advice to the government on Gender and Children issues. Issues affecting Persons with Disabilities and the Aged; initiate policy guidelines and lead the process of gender equality and mainstreaming at both the National and International levels.

Learn more at www.womenaffairs.gov.ng

About the African Union Commission

The African Union Commission is the Secretariat of the African Union, a 55- Member State regional organization. Its vision is that of “An integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the global arena” and its mission is to be “An efficient and value-adding institution driving the African integration and development process in close collaboration with African Union Member States, the Regional Economic Communities and African citizens”

Learn more at www.au.int/en

About the African Women Leaders Network

The African Women Leaders' Network, established in 2017, serves as a continental platform to galvanize women’s leadership of Africa towards lasting peace and sustainable development in all sectors and at all levels, building on, and working with, existing women networks with the support of the African Union and the United Nations.

The Network builds on African women’s leadership to increase women’s participation in decision-making through peer learning and mentoring, enhanced solidarity, advocacy and capacity-building among other strategies.

Learn more at www.awlnafrica.net

About UNDP

UNDP is the leading United Nations organization fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations build integrated, lasting solutions for people and the planet.

Learn more at www.undp.org/africa/

About AFSIT

Established in July 2023, the Africa Facility to Support Inclusive Transitions (AFSIT) is a joint initiative of UNDP and the African Union Commission (AUC). It was established in response to the call by the African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government during the 16th Extraordinary Session on Terrorism and Unconstitutional Changes of Government (UCG) in Africa for collective action and a robust mechanism to deepen democratic governance and reinforce collective security on the continent.