She says this crisis requires urgent and coordinated action from African governments.

Sallah-Njie said Africa faces a growing crisis where legal protections exist but are not effectively enforced. “Our biggest problem in Africa is not the absence of legal frameworks, we have them. The real crisis is the failure to enforce these protections where women live, in their communities, in their homes,” she said.

She highlighted the newly adopted Convention on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls in Africa as a landmark step forward. The convention, endorsed by African heads of state in February 2025, is the first legally binding instrument on the continent aimed at tackling gender-based violence in all its forms, including digital abuse, femicide, and harmful cultural practices like child marriage and female genital mutilation.

Since its adoption, six countries have signed the convention, Djibouti, The Gambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Liberia, and one other. However, Sallah-Njie stressed that at least 15 ratifications are required for the treaty to come into force, after which states will be legally obligated to implement its provisions.

She also pointed to concerning trends of online violence targeting women, especially female leaders and young women, and called for a survivor-centred approach combined with efforts to promote “positive masculinity” to challenge harmful gender norms.

Sallah-Njie urged governments, civil society, and the media to play a greater role in ensuring the convention translates into real protections for women and girls. “Africa has some of the most progressive legal instruments on paper. Our challenge now is effective implementation,” she said.

She warned that while individual countries such as Namibia have made progress in women’s leadership, more action is needed across all sectors to address systemic violence and discrimination.

--ChannelAfrica--