Transformative Leadership: The Africa Leadership Excellence Academy (AFLEX)

The Africa Leadership Excellence Academy (AFLEX) is a valued partner of the Global Center for Gender Equality and has worked alongside our team to advance our transformative leadership goals. Read more from our partners about the impact that they’ve made to advance gender equality in Ethiopia.  

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AFLEX, Africa’s premier continental leadership academy, was founded to address one of the continent’s most urgent needs: visionary, ethical, and competent leadership. As a center of excellence for leadership development and policy advisory, AFLEX works to strengthen governance systems, build institutional capacity, and prepare future African leaders to navigate complex challenges. Central to this mission is the belief that transformative leadership must be inclusive and gender- transformative. Gender-transformative leadership—grounded in equity, collaboration, accountability, and care—is essential not only to redress historical imbalances but to fully unlock Africa’s development potential. 

©AFLEX

AFLEX focuses on three core challenges that hinder effective leadership: driving systemic and cultural change, bridging leadership skill gaps, and enhancing access to leadership opportunities. By reshaping entrenched norms, equipping leaders with the necessary mindset and tools, and creating more inclusive and sustainable development pathways, AFLEX positions itself as a catalyst for change. Gender equality and inclusivity are fundamental to AFLEX’s mission. Transformative leadership cannot exist without actively challenging power imbalances and enabling citizens to shape public decisions. This is why AFLEX prioritizes the training and elevation of women as leadership facilitators and mentors—those who can both model and drive inclusive practices in leadership institutions across Africa. Inclusive leadership is not just about representation; it is the engine of sustainable development, innovation, and good governance. At AFLEX, we aspire not only to advocate for gender equality but also to model it in our own practices, programs, and partnerships—becoming a continental standard for what inclusive, forward-looking leadership truly looks like. 

Under the leadership of President Zadig Abreha and Vice Presidents Meseret Desta and Dr. Wondeye Legesse, AFLEX is advancing its gender mandate in partnership with GCfGE. With Dr. Essayas Taye and Samrawit Alemayehu leading project management and gender strategy, the team supports the PL4GE initiative and broader gender equality efforts across the institution. Through this collaboration, AFLEX is committed not only to advocating for gender equality but to embodying it—establishing a bold, inclusive model for leadership development across the continent.