AFLIGA launches inaugural thought leadership series on African Female Leadership
The Africa Future Leaders Institute of Global Affairs (AFLIGA) is set to host the inaugural edition of its Thought Leadership Series on Wednesday, August 7, 2025, at its International Secretariat in Accra.
Themed “Rethinking African Female Leadership Development: Lessons from Indigenous African Leadership Constructed Practices”, the event seeks to spark a continental dialogue on reclaiming and reimagining traditional African leadership models to inform modern leadership development—particularly for women.
Drawing from pre-colonial African systems where women played prominent roles in political and spiritual leadership, the event will critically examine how such indigenous models can inspire culturally authentic, gender-inclusive leadership frameworks today.
Reviving African Leadership traditions
Pre-colonial African societies once boasted diverse leadership systems—ranging from centralised kingdoms to decentralised chiefdoms—many of which integrated women into governance structures. In the Ashanti Empire, for instance, queen mothers not only co-ruled with kings but also selected successors to the throne. Similar examples of female regents and priestesses existed across Nigeria and other parts of the continent.
“Feminine leadership was once integral to African political and spiritual life. Our challenge today is to examine how those indigenous systems can be revitalised and adapted for contemporary governance,” said an AFLIGA spokesperson.
The event comes at a time when women’s representation in African leadership remains disproportionately low. According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU, 2025), women hold only 14.5 per cent of parliamentary seats in Ghana—a figure that has remained largely stagnant for a decade. In Kenya, women occupy 23.3 per cent of the National Assembly, still below the one-third constitutional gender quota.
While progress has been made in tertiary education—with South Africa’s 2022 Gender Parity Index indicating a 141:100 female-to-male ratio in enrollment—the gains have not translated into equal leadership roles in politics and corporate governance. Recent data from Boardroom Africa shows that in 2024, women held only 24 per cent of board seats in listed companies in Ghana, a slight decline from the previous year.
Objectives and format
The Thought Leadership Series aims to provide a platform for rethinking leadership development by engaging scholars, traditional leaders, civil society actors, and policymakers in critical reflection.
Key objectives include:
• Reframing dominant leadership narratives through a gender lens.
• Showcasing traditional female leadership roles such as queen mothers and spiritual leaders.
• Developing practical, culturally grounded leadership frameworks for use in institutions, training, and mentorship programmes.
• Encouraging cross-sector collaboration to influence policy and institutional reform.
The event will feature:
• A keynote address by a distinguished scholar in indigenous knowledge and leadership.
• A panel discussion with academics, practitioners, a traditional leader, and a gender policy expert.
• An interactive dialogue with a curated audience of youth leaders, policymakers, academics, and media professionals.
• Post-event documentation and dissemination through AFLIGA’s platforms.
Restoring African Agency in leadership development
According to AFLIGA, modern leadership development has been dominated by Eurocentric, hierarchical models that often conflict with Africa’s collectivist cultures. These models tend to marginalise women and ignore community-based leadership traditions rooted in moral authority, relational stewardship, and participatory governance.
“The Ubuntu ethos—grounded in shared responsibility and reconciliation—offers powerful tools for inclusive leadership. It’s time we critically engage and adapt these indigenous systems to today’s realities,” AFLIGA noted.
The initiative seeks to bridge historical insight and modern needs, catalysing a shift from imported leadership paradigms to Afrocentric models that reflect Africa’s cultural, political, and social contexts.
Anticipated outcomes
The inaugural edition is expected to:
• Raise awareness of indigenous African leadership values that empowered women.
• Provide critical insights into applying African philosophies such as Ubuntu to leadership training.
• Document practical case studies and propose new frameworks for gender-responsive leadership.
• Influence continental policy dialogue through a position paper on culturally grounded leadership development.
About AFLIGA and the Thought Leadership Series
AFLIGA is a pan-African think tank focused on women and youth empowerment. The Thought Leadership Series is a multidisciplinary platform designed to provoke critical thinking and shape strategic responses to Africa’s most pressing leadership and development challenges.
Each edition addresses core themes such as leadership and governance, gender equity, cultural identity, peace and security, and economic transformation. Future sessions will explore topics including youth innovation, continental trade, and indigenous knowledge systems.
By promoting inclusive, resilient, and culturally rooted leadership approaches, AFLIGA aims to contribute to the emergence of a new generation of ethical and competent African leaders.
