We cannot make progress on some of the most important issues facing our society today without a diverse set of voices contributing to the research and discussion— Beth Duff-Brown, December 8, 2020
Women are significantly underrepresented in the field of Economics worldwide. To address this gender imbalance, national economic associations in various countries have established committees dedicated to increasing the number of women economists. For instance, The Committee for the Advancement of Women in the Economics Profession (CSWEP) was established by the American Economics Association (AEA) in 1973 to enhance the representation of female economists in the United States. In Canada, The Canadian Women Economists (CWEN) was established in 1990 by The Canadian Economics Association (CEA) with a similar goal. The Royal Economic Society’s Women’s Committee, created in 1996, aims to support women economists in the UK. Additionally, the Women in Economics Network (WNE) was formed in 2002 by the Economic Society of Australia (ESA) to address the lack of female representation in that country. It's important to note that all the women's groups mentioned above were established by national associations and serve women in specific countries. These organizations typically sponsor technical and mentoring workshops, organize sessions at major economics conferences, provide travel grants for members to present their research, and offer fellowships, internships, and dissertation and research grants to their members. Data suggests that the lack of female representation is even more pervasive in African countries, especially in academia. The Economics Department at the University of Burundi has 15 male faculty members and NO female faculty members; the Economics Department at the University of Cape Coast in Ghana also has 18 male faculty members and NO female members Women constitute only 10% (3 women and 27 men) of the Economics Department faculty at the University of Dar es Salaam. (Update data) There is clearly a need for a professional association focused on addressing the shortage of African women economists. The Association for the Advancement of African Women Economists (AAAWE) meets this need. Formed in March 2012, it is the first and only organization dedicated to promoting the scholarship of African women economists. To achieve this goal, AAAWE will follow the models used in other international efforts, but with a specific focus on mentoring young African women economists.