The 31st of July marks Africa’s Women’s Day and is observed annually across the continent. It is a day that is earmarked to recognise and affirm the role of women’s organising in achieving the political freedom of Africa and advancing the social and economic status of women on the continent. The proclamation of Africa Women’s Day as a commemorative day was declared 53 years ago at the inaugural conference of the Pan-African Women’s Organization (PAWO) that was held in Dar es Salaam in modern-day Tanzania. While many people know of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the predecessor to the African Union (AU), few realise that PAWO was established before the OAU. African women were mobilising, organising, and challenging colonialism and oppression long before men gathered in Ethiopia to form the OAU.
As we commemorate Africa’s Women’s Day today, it is critical that we engage in reflective conversations on the meaning and value of the pan-African ideal and what it means for an evolving Africa. Many have argued – and the argument can certainly be made in the context of South Africa, where I am based – that there has been a regression in the advancement of pan-Africanism across the continent. Many African nations are battling to navigate the legacies of colonialism that, in some instances, have given rise to xenophobic sentiments. Furthermore, many African nations are torn asunder by ethnic tensions, some expressed through armed conflict and violence, and others deeply embedded in the institutional structures of society. In this violence and institutional alienation, African women and children, in particular, are on the receiving end.
