African Women on Board (AWB) is an independent non-profit, African women-led organisation headquartered in

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, working to advance narratives and improve realities for

African women The culture, evolution, and history of women who were born in, live in, and are from the continent of Africa reflect the evolution and History of Africa, history of the African continent itself. Numerous short studies regarding women's history i ...

and girls globally. The organisation is made up of women of African heritage from around the world.

History

African Women on Board was founded by Dr.

Nkiru Balonwu Nkiru Balonwu is an entrepreneur and activist based in Lagos, Nigeria. She is known for her views of women as the solution to Africa's problems and is the founder and chairperson of African Women on Board, an independent, women-led African non-p ...

in 2017. The organisation started out as a network of women working together to advance the economic, social and political rights of African women. AWB's current mandate includes finding solutions to getting women into senior management, C-suite and board positions. AWB also works to include African women's narratives in global conversations so that African women's perspectives will inform policy making. AWB emphasizes recruiting allies from all backgrounds – female and male – to advance the work of making life better for African women and girls.

Activities

African Women on Board's activities consist of programming and workshops to build women's capacities in their careers and businesses, and international round tables and forums to drive discussions on topical issues affecting African women. AWB formed partnerships with several organisations to broaden its impact. African Women on Board is a

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a $25,000 (about $550,000 in 2023) gift from Edsel Ford. ...

Grant recipient, collaborating on masterclasses for women in politics, investment and financial literacy. AWB is working with the

Wikimedia Foundation The Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. (WMF) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in San Francisco, California, and registered there as foundation (United States law), a charitable foundation. It is the host of Wikipedia, th ...

to profile notable African women on the platform. AWB is also partnering with the

London Stock Exchange The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...

Africa Advisory Group to produce a report on activating female entrepreneurship. AWB is seeking to address the gaps in female IT and tech talent. They are partnering with reputable institutions such as the Heartland Incubation Hub of the Oluaka Institute, a government-certified computer and technical training institution, and Imaginarium, a creative design and content studio, to support training programmes for young women and girls, age five and upwards, in areas of 2D gaming, animation, web pages and computer applications. African Women on Board had its global launch at the Ford Foundation Center for Social Justice on Thursday 26 September 2019 in New York during the

UN General Assembly The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA or GA; , AGNU or AG) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as its main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ. Currently in its 79th session, its powers, ...

. The event, tagged AWB@UNGA, was about fast tracking black women into leadership roles of the future.

References

{{reflist Organizations based in Lagos Women's rights organizations based in Africa