Date & Time
November 11 - 12, 2025 ET
- OVERVIEW
- SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
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.
Publication Opportunity
Selected papers from the workshop will be invited to submit to a special issue of the Journal of African Economies on Women and Jobs in Africa. All submissions will undergo the Journal of African Economies’ peer-review process. Inclusion in this special issue is not guaranteed and is contingent upon successful review.
See Call for Proposals PDF here.
Submission deadline: June 30, 2025
Workshop dates: November 11-12, 2025
Location: Accra, Ghana
We invite email submissions of extended abstracts of a maximum of two (2) pages that will include the objectives, the research question, a brief description of the methodology, preliminary findings, and clearly articulated policy relevance of the research.
Submission process:
- Submissions should be a single attachment of the extended abstract in .doc, .docx or .pdf file formats.
- The body of the email should clearly indicate the names of the authors and have the contact information of one corresponding author.
- Early-career researchers are encouraged to apply.
- One submission per researcher: A researcher can be an author/co-author on no more than one submission.
Key Dates:
- Deadline for submission: June 30, 2025
- Notification of selection and funding awards: July 31, 2025
- Deadline to accept: August 18, 2025
- Deadline for full paper submission by selected presenters: October 20, 2025
- Program posted on the workshop’s website: November 3, 2025
Email submission to: africawomenjobs@worldbank.org
Scientific Committee:
Anukriti (World Bank), Adamnesh A. Bogale (African Center for Economic Transformation), Theophiline Bose-Duker (African Center for Economic Transformation), Andrew Brudevold-Newman (World Bank), Clara Delavallade (World Bank), Monica Lambon-Quayefio (University of Ghana), Nkechi Owoo (University of Ghana), Michael O’Sullivan (World Bank).