We, the participants of the Sixth African Regional Conference on Women, representing governments and civil society; meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 22-26 November, 1999,

Reaffirming the commitments made in Dakar and Beijing to the empowerment and advancement of women, their full participation in decision-making processes and access to resources;

Reaffirming also the explicit recognition of the inherent dignity and equal rights of women and men;

Recognising that efforts have been made to implement the Platforms for Action over the last five years, particularly in the following areas:

• To-date, forty-seven African countries have ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

• There is an increase in the participation of women in politics and decision-making – one country has passed the 30% target in parliament and several others are on the path to reach this objective.

• In several countries, land tenure reform processes have led to legislation, which provides for women to own, use and inherit land. Also, there is a rise in women-specific mechanisms created by mainstream finance and banking organisations, to facilitate easier access to loans and credit schemes. There is also a greater understanding of women’s life-cycle needs and efforts to provide basic services to address those needs.

• There is now a vibrant and growing women’s activism and advocacy for peace, which has helped to mount pressure for the inclusion of women in mainstream peace-processes hence the formation of the OAU Women’s Committee on Peace and Development. Using their community

• management skills and participatory approach to power, women are bringing a qualitatively different perspective to peace negotiations and peace building.

• A global consensus has been reached that women’s rights are human rights and that violence against women is one of the most widespread violations of human rights.

• Positive steps have been taken, in countries’ efforts to promote and protect the rights of the girl-child and to provide education, health and a better quality of life.

• The strong advocacy around female genital mutilation has led to the decrease of the practice, or its replacement with new positive rites of passage, within some rural communities across the continent.

• As a result of constitutional reviews and reforms new progressive legislation, which addresses specific concerns of women, have been enacted.

• Efforts to improve the effectiveness of national machineries for the advancement of women have increased, in order to ensure that gender is mainstreamed in all government institutions, sectors, policies and programmes.

• An enhanced recognition by some regional inter-governmental organisations of the importance of including a gender dimension in all their programmes and policies has been translated into concrete gender mechanisms.

Recognising with grave concern that, although these achievements give us hope, gaps and shortcomings persist, such as:

• The high incidence of wars and violent conflicts, marked by the increased targeting of civilian populations through various tactics, including the indiscriminate use of antipersonnel weapons, continues to drain the continent of its resources, contributes to the negative perception that protracted exile or displacement is an acceptable way of life for many Africans and legitimises the most abysmal forms of violence against women and children.

• Continuous violation of the basic human rights of women, children and men, including the right to life as wars and military engagements take priority over the promotion of sustainable development. In addition, embargoes and blockades are causing a lot of sufferings and agony to ordinary women and men and children.

• The systematic under-representation of women in decision-making and leadership positions persists, despite the gains made,

• Deepening poverty, namely feminised poverty, affects increasing numbers of women, particularly rural women,

• The lack of women and girls’ control over their lives and their limited choices expose them particularly to the HIV/AIDS pandemic and further erodes their economic and social status; this is a severe constraint to women’s advancement and Africa’s development,

• Lack of quality health services, especially reproductive health services, has contributed to high maternal mortality and morbidity rates,

• Lack of attention and resources committed to the special needs of disabled and elderly women exacerbates their marginalization,

• Inadequate access by women and girls to education and information, leaves them continuously deprived of any meaningful personal development, lagging far behind the scientific and technological advances that characterise the end of the twentieth century. As a result, scores of African women will enter the third millennium in a state of almost total deprivation and marginalization,

• Lack of adequate resources and inappropriate status for national machineries is a major constraint to the promotion of women’s empowerment and gender equality.

• Lack of gender disaggregated data at the institutional level which can be used to influence policy-making and gender-responsive action.

• Lack of meaningful societal transformation in attitudes and policy-making structures towards women’s power and participation.

Convinced that:

• The new millennium is a critical opportunity for transformative change in women’s advancement towards equality – African leaders must see this transition as a test of their leadership;

• Women are key partners for development and their capabilities and leadership skills must be used if there is to be qualitative change and the achievement of an African Renaissance;

• The full participation of women in decision making will bring about an equitable sharing of resources and sustainable human development to the African Renaissance.

• African women must become partners in environmental management and protection and their wisdom and indigenous knowledge must be incorporated in this regard,

• The operationalization by all governments in Africa of their commitments towards the empowerment of women and gender equality is a pre-condition to reverse the trend of underdevelopment,

We therefore urge all stakeholders in development on the African continent, including international organisations to:

• Expedite the transition from pledges to concrete action as we enter the twenty-first century;

• Strengthen their resolve, and re-affirm prior commitments to address all the root causes of discrimination against women, girls and gender inequality.

• Put in place, without further delay, appropriate resources and effective mechanisms to allow women to enjoy fully all their human rights and fundamental freedoms, empowerment and gender equality.

• Redouble efforts to achieve peace and human security in Africa and, recognising the catalytic role of women in local peace initiatives, to ensure their equal participation and influence in peace processes at higher national and regional levels,

• Ratify CEDAW if they have not already done so, remove reservations by June 2000 and accelerate its implementation

• Make the provisions of CEDAW part and parcel of the domestic law in each country so that women can claim and enforce their rights within their national courts.

• Ensure full and speedier implementation of both the Dakar and Beijing Platforms for Action.