The Global Entrepreneurship Festival (GEF) 2025 is setting a new benchmark for women’s leadership on the global stage, positioning female trailblazers at the center of power, policy, and technological transformation. With a strategic focus on Women in Power, this year’s edition is engineered to spotlight how women are driving impact across governance, enterprise, and the fast-moving world of artificial intelligence.
From November 21-23, GEF 2025 will convene a cohort of women who stand at the forefront of global influence. Among them are Vice President of the Republic of Ghana, Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang; Former Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma; and Chairperson of the United Africa Group Windhoek, Dr. Martha Namundjebo-Tilahu.
Positioned as the heartbeat of the Festival, the International Women’s Congress will serve as a high-impact convening for women shaping the future through innovation, governance, and values-driven leadership.
Speaking on the strategic imperative of the Congress, Director of Partnerships for GEF, Dr. Joy Francis, emphasised the caliber and influence of the women gathering in Accra for the three-day event. “The International Women’s Congress is a gathering of women who are quietly and boldly reshaping the future of leadership, technology, policy, and sustainability. These are women whose voices do not just speak; they shift cultures. Women who lead with heart, build with intention, and rise with a resilience that lights the way for others. With grace, dignity, and an unshakeable sense of purpose, they are defining a new era of global impact. When women step forward, the world pays attention, and when we rise together, transformation becomes inevitable.”
This year’s Festival positions AI as the catalyst for a more inclusive and future-fit entrepreneurial landscape. With the theme “The AI-Powered Entrepreneur: Creating a Sustainable Planet,” GEF 2025 will mobilise over 10,000 global leaders, innovators, investors, startups, creatives, and policymakers from more than 70 countries with an additional virtual audience exceeding 10 million.
The momentum for GEF 2025 accelerated dramatically ahead of the festival with the Entrepreneurs’ March a galvanising show of unity and ambition. At dawn, thousands of entrepreneurs and innovators flooded the streets of Accra, signaling Africa’s rising influence in global entrepreneurship. Participants assembled in GEF-branded shirts, waving national flags and carrying placards that read, “This is not a protest. It is a movement an entrepreneurship movement.”
It was a demonstration of intent. A declaration that Africa’s innovation economy is accelerating at scale. The March highlighted collective priorities prosperity, job creation, sustainability, digital transformation, and youth empowerment aligning directly with the Festival’s mandate.
The energy in Accra was unmistakable: a fusion of creativity, collaboration, and entrepreneurial urgency, mirroring the forces reshaping the continent’s startup ecosystem. As President H.E. John Dramani Mahama prepares to host the Festival from November 21–23, Ghana’s positioning as a regional innovation hub is gaining global attention.
GEF 2025 will deliver 12 concurrent events purpose-built to unlock economic inclusion, accelerate digital capabilities, and advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The International Women’s Congress remains the strategic anchor, affirming that women are critical to building resilient economies and sustainable futures.
