The Second African Women's Economic Summit took place in Lagos, Nigeria last week and saw hundreds of women professionals and entrepreneurs gathered to pledge their ongoing commitment to empower African women economically. The summit called for the investment in women to push Africa's economies forward. The conference was attended by professionals as well as activists and policy makers organized jointly by the African Development Bank (AfDB) and New Face, New Voices, a women's foundation led by Mozambique's first lady, Graça Machel. “We see this as an opportunity to engage with decision makers in the financial sector – policy makers, regulators, commercial banks and prominent women entrepreneurs to find ways to accelerate the inclusion of women in Africa's growth story. We are not only looking at increase in numbers of women but also of their inclusion in key decision-makings positions and higher responsibilities," said Machel. “I don't want my daughters to be in the same kind of summit in the coming years discussing the same issues," said Vice president of AfBD, Akintomide, who said she instead preferred to see change happen in her lifetime. In her keynote address, Okonjo-Iweala, a candidate in the recent election for World Bank president and currently minister of finance to Nigeria, emphasized that investing in more and broader opportunities for women is the only way to sustain economic growth in Africa. She also suggested the establishment of a specialized bank catering to women without access to traditional investment financing. “Women are the third largest emerging markets in the globe. Women are the third largest source of growth. One of the fastest ways to sustain current growth is to invest in women," she said. Moreover, New Faces, New Voices, aims to build a database gauging African women's participation in the economy and their role as entrepreneurs over the next two years. Although personally absent from the conference, President of AfBD, Donald Kaberuka reconfirmed the AfDB's commitment to assist the African Women's Economic Summit in achieving its aim of increasing female participation in the economic development of Africa, saying women have always played a key role in development on the continent. “I believe, strongly believe, investing in women differently is essential to revitalize our economies," he said.
