By Henry Akubuiro
Lots of awards, gender awareness and intellectual fireworks will be on display as the fourth edition of the African Women Impact Summit (AWIS) aims to enhance women’s inclusion in African leadership and empower them to make a difference financially.
Predicated on the theme, “The Africa We Want 4.0: Sustainable Leadership to Unlocking Women’s Potential”, the international event is slated for November 9 and 10th at Eko Hotels and Suites. Events include a panel session on the first day and an Awards and Gala Night at Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos, on the last day.
Yvonne Ebbi, Chairman of the Central Planning Committee for AWIS 2024, said at a recent press conference held in Lagos that the event would unite Africans and in diaspora with a common purpose: “Bringing together participants from over 30 African countries, the summit aims to expand the African women’s workforce and champion their leadership across various industries.”
She emphasised the need to harness the power of the diaspora for Africa’s development and create an awareness of several ways African women could be financially independent. “Women need to realise how powerful they are and what they can do differently anywhere in Africa and beyond. We aim to harness the strength of awareness and inclusion of women for the good of society,” she said.
Needless to say, ten of the poorest countries in the world are located in Africa. More worrisome is a damning 2024 UN report that 66 percent of poor women in Africa live in Sub Saharan Africa. This explains the urgency of changing the narrative with innovative ideas and incentives.
The co-founder of AWIS, Utchay Odims, underscored the importance of the summit with its global outlook, primed to showcase African women making a mark on the continent and outside of it. He added that the pre-event activities dubbed ‘Project empowerHer’ would serve as a practical training to empower 1,500 micro, small, and medium-sized businesswomen in Nigeria.
It begins on September 7 and ends on 14, 2024 with training sessions on digital marketing and artificial intelligence tagged “Entrepreneurship innovation: Maximising Productivity with Digital Tools” According to him, in the lead up to the main event, the Power-Up Africa initiative would take place on November 4 – 6, 2024, geared towards bridging the gender gap in leadership and governance.
He announced that the award nomination portal was open to all to submit distinctive African names for the African HEroes awards meant for those leveraging networks to empower women and individuals breaking barriers to inspire future generations.