A new law in Sierra Leone will ensure that at least 30% of parliamentarians are women and impose similar quotas in other institutions, including government, local councils, the diplomatic corps and the civil service.

Last Thursday, President Julius Maada Bio signed a new Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Bill 2022, known also as the GEWE Act 2022, that is seeking to open up the country’s political space and establish a level playing field for women in politics.

Sierra Leonean lawmakers on Tuesday voted unanimously to pass the Gender Empowerment Act, ensuring that one in three members of parliament, as well as local councillors, is a woman.

Women across Sierra Leone have through a communique submitted to the Speaker of Parliament called for the creation of a Women's Fund to enhance effective political participation and to also advance the interests and concerns of women for the development of the country

Deliberate effort to put women in political positions, building institutions and strong legal frameworks, as well as strong human resource capacity,  are some of the catalysts that will ensure the African woman is empowered.