AFRICA GENDER FUTURES: THEMATIC FUTURES

The document forecasts that achieving full gender equality by 2043 would significantly boost Africa's economy, increasing GDP by US$1 trillion compared to the current path and lifting 80 million more people out of extreme poverty. The most substantial gains are projected for North Africa and specific countries like Egypt and Nigeria, though the extent of the benefit depends on a country's economic structure and population growth.

• Achieving full gender parity by 2043 is projected to increase Africa's GDP to US$9.1 trillion, which is US$1 trillion larger than the forecast for the Current Path (US$8.1 trillion) and US$740 billion larger than the Gender scenario.
• North Africa is expected to see the most significant positive momentum under the Gender Equality scenario, with its economy becoming US$469 billion larger than the Current Path forecast by 2043. Other regional gains include West Africa (US$306 billion), East Africa (US$104.5 billion), Southern Africa (US$101 billion), and Central Africa (US$72 billion).
• At the country level, Egypt and Nigeria are projected to see the largest absolute improvements in GDP, while North African countries (Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt) and Somalia would experience the largest percentage increases, ranging from 20% to 30% compared to the Current Path.
• The Gender Equality scenario is forecast to reduce the number of people living in extreme poverty (using a US$1.90 threshold) to 314 million by 2043, which is 80 million fewer than the Current Path projection and 28 million fewer than the Gender scenario.
• The ability of a country to benefit from the elimination of gender barriers in education and employment is linked to its economic structure; countries with high population growth and small, undiversified economies—such as Burundi, Central African Republic, Sierra Leone, Liberia, South Sudan, and Guinea Bissau—show the least absolute improvement in income levels.

APA

Yeboua, K., & Cilliers, J. (2026). AFRICA GENDER FUTURES: THEMATIC FUTURES. Institute for Security Studies. https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=16-gender&topic=10-impact-gender-equality

Chicago

Yeboua, Kouassi, and Jakkie Cilliers. AFRICA GENDER FUTURES: THEMATIC FUTURES. Institute for Security Studies, 2026. https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=16-gender&topic=10-impact-gender-equality.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Yeboua |first1=Kouassi |last2=Cilliers |first2=Jakkie |title=AFRICA GENDER FUTURES: THEMATIC FUTURES |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=21 April 2026 |url=https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=16-gender&topic=10-impact-gender-equality |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yeboua2026africa, author = {Yeboua, Kouassi and Cilliers, Jakkie}, title = {{AFRICA GENDER FUTURES: THEMATIC FUTURES}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2026}, month = apr, url = {https://futures.issafrica.org/thematic/guide.pdf?thematic=16-gender&topic=10-impact-gender-equality}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }