Africa’s women: a powerful untapped economic force
“So often, it takes only
one woman to make a
difference. If you
empower that woman
with information, and
training, or a microloan,
she can lift up her entire
family and contribute to
the success of her
community. Multiply that
one woman’s impact by a
hundred or a thousand,
and perhaps a million
lives can change.”
Condoleezza Rice, former US Secretary of State
The women of Africa are an important part of and a
contributor to the African growth story. The challenges for
African women are twofold. For those involved in informal
economic activities, the challenge is to create access to
more formal economic participation. For those who are
educated and working in the formal sector, the challenge is
to move up the corporate ladder.
In Africa, the contribution of women to economic activities
is considerable; however, much of it is informal. It is
estimated that African women constitute 70% of the
informal economy.
According to the UN Food and
Agriculture Organization, women in Africa are responsible
for 70% of crop production, 50% of animal husbandry and
60% of marketing. Women undertake nearly 100% of food
processing activities, in addition to child care and other
responsibilities in households.
Creating opportunities for women to participate in the
economy will improve their earning potential, assisting
families to move out of poverty and contribute to the
overall economy.
Further, the participation of African women in the formal
economy is under leveraged and under valued. One
outcome of this is the lack of women in senior management
positions (see “Case study: South African women in
leadership” on page 10), which reduces the visibility of
women in the economy. According to the latest World Bank
Enterprise Survey, in both the public and private sectors,
only 1 in 26 salaried African women is employed in a senior
management position, compared with 1 in every 6 men.
Compounding this is the wage gap between male and
female employees that conciously and sub-conciously
reinforces the view that women are less valued than their
male counterparts even when the same work is performed.
Various well-documented studies (see sidebar “Greater
gender diversity in management teams can improve
business performance” on page 13) clearly show the value
that female leadership brings to an organization, yet this
potential could be more fully explored.
Damaging perceptions and attitudes to women leadership
create additional challenges in retaining African talent in
the formal sector.
Because of limited possibilities for
advancement in their home continent, a
significant proportion of degreed African
women, nearly a third at 28%, migrate
out of Africa in search of suitable job
opportunities. This is in contrast with
only 17% of educated men.
Henriette Ekwe, political activist and journalist of
Cameroon, says that senior women journalists prefer to
leave the country in order to gain access to higher
positions. Africa is losing its educated female workforce to
the African diaspora. However, there are many forwardthinking
organizations that understand that women bring vital and impressive qualifications
to the workplace.These employers are introducing flexible workarrangements,
maternitybenefits and mentorship opportunities, among other initiatives,
to retain these vital skills.
In addition, organizations can provide opportunities for
leadership and entrepreneurship. The Coca-Cola Company,
in growing its Micro Distribution Centers, has committed
that 50% of all new centers will be run by women.
Retaining women’s skills and qualifications has an
additional benefit – the creation of role models. In the
Ernst & Young Scaling up report, it was found that women
entrepreneurs were able to overcome fears of failure by
following role models who exemplify risk-taking and high
achievement.
Part of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneurial Winning Women
program identifies and supports women entrepreneurs by
providing them with role models as part of the program to
grow their businesses.
This article was originally published in the Women of Africa Document by the Enrst and Young .
