“We’re no longer creating rooms where we just talk about women’s issues. We are shaping global issues.” - Ms. Ahunna Eziakonwa, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Africa to the United Nations #AWLNGlobalForum #AWLNUNGA81 #WomenLead

“One thing you learn very quickly is that being in the room and having influence in the room are not necessarily the same thing. You can have a seat and still not have a voice. You can have a voice and still not have the resources to turn ideas into action. And you can have women represented in institutions without changing the institutions themselves.” - Folly Bah Thibault, Senior News Anchor, Al Jazeera English #AWLNGlobalForum #AWLNUNGA81 #WomenLead

“Our generation’s responsibility is not simply to celebrate the barriers we have crossed. It is to make sure that those who follow us encounter fewer of them.” - H.E. Amb. Selma Malika Haddadi, Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission #AWLNGlobalForum #AWLNUNGA81 #WomenLead

Leadership is measured not by title, but by what changes because of it. Across Africa, women are shaping institutions, strengthening accountability and influencing the decisions that define our societies. But leadership also depends on building the conditions that allow it to endure. At the #AWLNGlobalForum, we put the focus on leadership that delivers, transforms institutions and creates pathways for those who follow. #UNGA81 #AWLNUNGA81

“Those roads that we all passed are roads that we paved, so that you will not have to travel the way we did. For you, it will be easier, and you will move faster and higher than we have.” — H.E. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, AWLN Patron & Former President of the Republic of Liberia #AWLNGlobalForum #AWLNUNGA81 #WomenLead

"La question n’est plus de savoir si les femmes peuvent diriger. Elles sont toutes là, elles ont dirigé. Elle est de savoir comment nos institutions leur permettent de le faire." -S.E. Judith Suminwa Tuluka, Première Ministre de la République démocratique du Congo #AWLNGlobalForum #AWLNUNGA81 #WomenLead

At the #AWLNGlobalForum, we celebrated H.E. Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, for her exceptional leadership and longstanding contribution to advancing women’s leadership, empowerment and gender equality across Africa and beyond. Her leadership continues to open pathways for women and inspire generations of African women leaders. #AWLNUNGA81 #WomenLead

“The Africa that we want cannot be built by half of Africa. And how quickly we do this depends on how well each generation of women lifts the next.” At the #AWLNGlobalForum, H.E. Amina J. Mohammed, UN Deputy Secretary-General, called for women to be fully part of building Africa’s future, while emphasizing the responsibility of each generation of women leaders to open pathways and lift the generation coming behind them. #UNGA81 #AWLNUNGA81

“As we stand on the shoulders of a generation of extraordinary women who have shaped and continue to shape our world, I would like to reiterate UNDP’s commitment to supporting initiatives like AWLN.” During the welcome remarks at the #AWLNGlobalForum, Ms. Aissata De, Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa, a.i., representing the UNDP Administrator, reaffirmed UNDP’s commitment to supporting women’s leadership and advancing AWLN’s work across the continent. #UNGA81 #AWLNUNGA81 #AfricanWomenLead

“Documents are not enough. Implementation is what matters. Africa needs gender-balanced solutions that are inclusive, responsive and informed by diverse perspectives.” In his introductory remarks at the #AWLNGlobalForum, H.E. Amb. Edrees Mohammed, Permanent Representative of the African Union Mission to the UN, underscored the need to turn commitments on women’s leadership into action. #UNGA81 #AWLNUNGA81 #AfricanWomenLead