Must leaders be men? In Africa, it's time for the patriarchy to give way | Minna Salami

All-male elections at the African Union highlighted the exclusion of talented women from power. The continent cannot thrive like that

What does it mean to be African? Is it simply being one of the 1.5 billion people from the continent? Does African mean the same as black? If you are a descendant from the UK, US, Brazil or Cuba, are you still African? Are only black Africans African, or does this include white Zimbabweans and Arab Egyptians? Or is Africa merely a western invention"?

These questions are passionately debated. To be African is to inhabit an identity shaped by a complicated history, politics and geography. Yet there is one aspect of this identity that receives far less discussion: namely, do we see Africans as male?

Minna Salami is the author of Can Feminism be African? and founder of the MsAfropolitan blog

Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here.