The African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET), the University of Ghana-Legon, and the World Bank announce a competitive call for papers and participation in a two-day policy research workshop to be held on November 11-12, 2025, on the campus of the University of Ghana-Legon.
Join us for an engaging workshop that will unite leading researchers and influential policymakers to explore the dynamic landscape around women and jobs, from labor force participation, skills development, to entrepreneurship and resilient rural livelihoods in Africa. This event promises to be a vibrant forum for discussing the latest challenges, groundbreaking evidence, and innovative solutions that are shaping the future of women's roles in the African economy to foster economic development.
Themes
We invite you to submit empirical papers that delve into the critical barriers to – as well as the opportunities to promote - women's economic participation. Priority will be given to research that studies policy solutions tailored to the unique economic landscapes of Africa to spur economic growth. Topics of interest include jobs for women as related to (but are not limited to):
- Innovations to facilitate labor force participation
- Education and skills development towards better job outcomes
- Gaps in wages between men and women, and occupational segregation
- How social norms affect jobs
- Care economy and care work
- Legal and policy frameworks to facilitate productive work
- The impact of digitization and AI on employment outcomes
- Livelihoods and resilience in agriculture
- Access to markets for SME entrepreneurs
Funding
There is scope for limited funding for selected participants, with priority given to early-career researchers to cover all or some of the costs of attending, as funding permits.
See Call for Proposals PDF here.