The Young Women Leaders’ Caucus (YWC) of the African Women Leaders Network (AWLN), in partnership with the African Union and the United Nations, including with the Office of the African Union Envoy on Women Peace and Security (WPS), Office of the Youth Envoy (OYE) and the AU Department for Human Resources, Science & Technology Department (HRST), UN Women are organizing the second “African Women Leaders Network Intergenerational Retreat on Leadership in Africa” as part of the “1 Million by 2021” Initiative: Africa unite for youth - Bridging the gap and reaching out to African youth.”
The first AWLN Intergenerational retreat occurred under the theme “An Action Retreat to Realize Agenda 2063 ‘The Africa We Want’ and the 2030 Global Sustainable Development Agenda” in August 2019 under the patronage of the President of the Republic of Kenya, H.E. Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta and Former President of the Republic of Liberia and Patron of the AWLN, H.E. Ms. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. Strong commitments were made to continue to intentionally unite leaders; young and senior women leaders, to be more inclusive in all aspects of leadership and build a sustainable, innovative and cross-generational mentorship structure, notably through the adoption of a two-year plan of action and a joint declaration.
The current COVID-19 pandemic is disproportionately impacting young girls and women across the world, including in Africa, affecting their well-being, social, mental and economic life. A significant number of consultations and high level meetings have been conducted on the Impact of COVID-19 on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE), led by institutions including but not limited to AUC-WGDD, Gender Is My Agenda Campaign (GIMAC), AWLN, UNDP, UN WOMEN among others, to identify gaps, provide recommendations and offer a space for strategic engagement with Member States, between/among CSOs and other key stakeholders.
The African Women Leaders Network has convened a global consultation engaging its established 25 chapters which shared the groundbreaking efforts they are leading to advance gender equality at all levels during the pandemic as well as its impact on women. As part of the national chapters, young women caucus are leading outstanding engagements to raise young women’s voice, aspirations while building on their expertise to address the gaps of meaningful young women engagement as part of the pandemic response. The retreat will serve as a unique opportunity to build and strengthen synergy and advance the current conversation to the next step through an intergenerational lens.
