Wangari MaathaiKenyaFirst African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize

Ngozi Okonjo-IwealaNigeriaFirst woman and first African to lead the World Trade Organization

Miriam MakebaSouth Africa“Mama Africa”: singer and voice against apartheid

Ellen Johnson SirleafLiberiaAfrica’s first elected woman head of state

Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieNigeriaAuthor of We Should All Be Feminists

Graça MachelMozambiqueFirst education minister of independent Mozambique

Sahle-Work ZewdeEthiopiaEthiopia’s first woman president

Leymah GboweeLiberiaLed the women’s movement that helped end Liberia’s civil war

Angélique KidjoBeninGrammy-winning singer and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador

Fatou BensoudaThe GambiaFirst woman and first African to be chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court

Lupita Nyong’oKenyaAcademy Award-winning actor

Nawal El SaadawiEgyptPhysician and writer who fought for women’s rights for over fifty years

Phumzile Mlambo-NgcukaSouth AfricaLed UN Women and was South Africa’s first woman Deputy President

Tsitsi DangarembgaZimbabweNovelist and filmmaker, winner of the PEN Pinter Prize

Amina J. MohammedNigeriaDeputy Secretary-General of the United Nations

Kirsty CoventryZimbabweFirst woman and first African to lead the Olympic movement

Julienne LusengeDR CongoChampion for survivors of sexual violence and Aurora Prize laureate

Margaret BusbyGhanaBritain’s first Black woman book publisher

Joyce BandaMalawiMalawi’s first woman president

Esther MahlanguSouth AfricaFirst woman to paint a BMW Art Car, taking Ndebele art worldwide

Oumou SangaréMaliThe “Songbird of Wassoulou”, who sings for women’s freedom

Hauwa IbrahimNigeriaHuman rights lawyer awarded the Sakharov Prize

Yvonne Chaka ChakaSouth AfricaThe “Princess of Africa”: singer and campaigner against malaria

Funmilayo Ransome-KutiNigeriaLed the Abeokuta women’s revolt and fought for women’s right to vote

Lillian NgoyiSouth AfricaHelped lead 20,000 women against apartheid’s pass laws in 1956

Cllr Faith Gakanje-AjalaNottinghamFounded AWEF in 2006