The African Development Bank Group's Country Gender Profiles offer a closer look at how women and men participate in African economies and societies.

Developed in partnership with national institutions, these analytical reports assess gender equality, legal frameworks and socio-economic gaps across the continent, translating data into practical insights that help policymakers, development partners, and Bank teams identify opportunities and shape effective responses, including where to channel financing for Africa's structural transformation.

Rooted in country-specific realities, the profiles inform practical decisions, whether that means widening access to finance, strengthening institutions, or creating better opportunities for women and young people. As the Bank prepares for its 2026 Annual Meetings in Brazzaville under the theme 'Mobilising Africa's Development Financing at Scale in a Fragmented World', this evidence base directly supports the Bank's Four Cardinal Points -- particularly mobilising capital at scale and harnessing Africa's demographic dividend.

Here are five things to know.

1 Every country has its own equality journey

No two countries share the same realities when it comes to access, participation, and opportunity. The Country Gender Profiles examine how women and men engage in economic life, education, leadership, and access to resources, highlighting where progress is taking shape and where structural barriers persist.

Because they reflect each country's specific context, the profiles help guide solutions and investments that are locally relevant and practically grounded, even as global financing flows become more fragmented.

2 National realities reflect both progress and persistent gaps

Across countries, advances and disparities often coexist. For example:

• Côte d'Ivoire: economically active women, underrepresented in leadership

Women in Côte d'Ivoire are deeply engaged in economic life with approximately 56 percent participating in the workforce, and women's entrepreneurship continuing to expand. Yet this economic presence is not reflected in decision-making spaces -- women hold roughly 13 percent of parliamentary seats.

Education trends tell a similar story. While progress has been made, gaps remain, with 34 percent of women completing secondary education, compared to 40 percent of men. Encouragingly, women's entrepreneurial presence is growing, with about one in four enterprises reporting female ownership.

• Mali: stronger representation, limited economic opportunity

Recent reforms have significantly increased women's parliamentary representation in Mali, now close to 29 percent, a meaningful step towards political inclusion.

However, economic and educational constraints remain pronounced. Only about 42 percent of women participate in the labour force, access to formal financial services remains limited (around 13 percent), and secondary education completion among women aged 25 and above stands at just 8 percent, compared to 20 percent for men.

• Republic of Congo: central to food production, underrepresented in power

Women represent just over half of the Republic of Congo's population (50.3 percent) and play a vital role in agriculture, accounting for 65 percent of the agricultural workforce and contributing nearly 70 percent of food production.

Yet representation gaps persist. Over the past decade, women have held an average of just over 11 percent of parliamentary seats - and only 8 percent of girls are enrolled in tertiary education.

Across all contexts, a consistent theme emerges: women's contributions are substantial, but structural constraints continue to limit their access to influence and opportunity and to the financing needed to scale their economic activity.

Source: African Development Bank, Country Gender Profiles (2024)

3 Country Gender Profiles offer tailored, not templated, knowledge

More than 45 Country Gender Profiles are now available, each customised to a specific national context. The issues highlighted in Seychelles look markedly different from those in South Sudan or Sierra Leone - and that specificity makes them more actionable, particularly for partners and investors seeking to direct resources where they can have the greatest impact.

Together, they form one of Africa's most comprehensive collections of country-level data on inclusion, participation, and opportunity gaps.

4 Insights that inform action and unlock financing

The Bank's Country Gender Profiles helped shape gender-sensitive legislation in Cote d'Ivoire

These profiles' findings directly shape how the Bank designs projects -- from agriculture to infrastructure -- ensuring that gender gaps are addressed early and that capital is mobilised where it is most needed.

In Mali, evidence of women's limited access to formal financial services has reinforced the case for expanding credit opportunities for women. At the continental level, initiatives such as the Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa (AFAWA), are working to address this gap by mobilising financing for women-led businesses with more than USD 3.1 billion already channelled to women entrepreneurs through partnerships with over 200 financial institutions.

Continentally, insights from the Country Gender Profiles have informed the Bank's mapping of more than 160 women entrepreneurs' associations, revealing both strengths and capacity gaps. These findings have guided more targeted support and deeper engagement with local business networks. For example, identified gaps in financial management capacity have prompted plans for focused training and more structured collaboration.

The impact extends beyond operations. Recommendations from the profiles have driven meaningful policy shifts and institutional reforms in African countries. The first Country Gender Profile for Côte d'Ivoire, published in 2015, helped shape policy discussions that paved the way for significant legal and institutional progress. This included the 2019 law promoting women's political representation and the 2021 law strengthening protections for victims of domestic and sexual violence.

5 Country Gender Profiles are built on partnership

The Bank collaborates with governments, civil society, and key development partners like UN Women and the European Union. Crucially, every Country Gender Profile is prepared with direct input from the relevant regional member country, ensuring national ownership of the analysis.

These partnerships add value by combining country-specific insights with broader comparative knowledge and technical rigour, making the profiles both locally relevant and globally informed. As a result, they serve as trusted tools for policymakers, advocates, and development actors working to advance gender equality and women's empowerment across Africa and a strategic asset as the Bank pursues its mission to mobilise development financing at scale, even in a fragmented world.

Pour consulter les profils genre pays, veuillez cliquer sur le lien suivant : https://www.afdb.org/en/documents/project-operations/country-gender-profiles