Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in Africa Western and Central
Africa Western and Central: Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments was 21.1% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in Africa Western and Central, 2000–2025
Source: Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). Measured in %.
Analysis
Africa Western and Central recorded 21.1% for proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in 2025. That is the highest value across all 26 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.6% on the previous year and up 40.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in Africa Western and Central peaked at 21.1% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 6.8%, in 2000.
Africa Western and Central ranks 39th of 47 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in Africa Western and Central, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 6.8% | — |
| 2001 | 7.4% | +8.5% |
| 2002 | 7.9% | +7.4% |
| 2003 | 9.0% | +12.8% |
| 2004 | 10.1% | +12.4% |
| 2005 | 10.7% | +6.3% |
| 2006 | 11.2% | +4.4% |
| 2007 | 12.3% | +10.1% |
| 2008 | 11.2% | -9.0% |
| 2009 | 11.1% | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 11.2% | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 11.9% | +5.9% |
| 2012 | 13.6% | +15.0% |
| 2013 | 14.7% | +7.8% |
| 2014 | 15.6% | +6.2% |
| 2015 | 15.1% | -3.4% |
| 2016 | 14.8% | -1.6% |
| 2017 | 15.3% | +2.9% |
| 2018 | 15.3% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 15.4% | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 16.3% | +6.1% |
| 2021 | 17.8% | +9.0% |
| 2022 | 19.2% | +7.6% |
| 2023 | 20.8% | +8.3% |
| 2024 | 20.8% | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 21.1% | +1.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 9.8% | 6.8% | 12.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.3% | 11.2% | 15.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.3% | 16.3% | 21.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Africa Western and Central
- 36 Armenia 38.3% compare
- 37 Mozambique 38.3% compare
- 38 Uzbekistan 38.0% compare
- 39 Dominican Republic 37.4% compare
- 40 Serbia 37.2% compare
- 41 France 36.2% compare
- 42 Guyana 36.1% compare
More public sector data for Africa Western and Central
- Arms imports 360.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.6914 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0005 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate -36.28 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 360.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 15.4 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0109 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate -14.98 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 8.02 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 62.46 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in Africa Western and Central?
- Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments in Africa Western and Central was 21.1% in 2025, according to Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
- What is the highest proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The highest recorded value was 21.1% in 2025.
- What is the lowest proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.8% in 2000.
- How does Africa Western and Central rank for proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments?
- Africa Western and Central ranks 39th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments rising or falling in Africa Western and Central?
- Over the last ten years it is up 40.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa Western and Central data come from?
- The figures come from Monthly ranking of women in national parliaments, Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), published as part of Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Women in parliaments are the percentage of parliamentary seats in a single or lower chamber held by women.