By Delphine O. On, LLM, MPH, LT USNR
It is no longer a development question. It is a national security imperative.
If the United States is serious about preventing global instability, countering extremist influence, competing with China, and securing long-term economic growth, it must rethink how it engages Africa. The most strategic investment the U.S. can make on the continent is not only in infrastructure, minerals, or military partnerships. It is in women.
Africa is home to the world’s youngest and fastest-growing population. By 2050, one in four people on the planet will be African. Whether that demographic shift fuels prosperity or instability will depend largely on economic opportunity, governance, and inclusion. And at the center of those variables are women.
Across the continent, women form the backbone of communities. They dominate the informal economy, produce much of the agricultural output, manage households, and serve as stabilizing forces during political or economic turmoil. Yet they remain systematically underfunded, underbanked, and underrepresented in formal decision making structures.
That exclusion is not just unjust. It is strategically shortsighted.
Economic marginalization is a well-documented driver of conflict, extremism, and forced migration. When communities lack opportunity, instability spreads. When instability spreads, global security is affected. The United States ultimately pays the price — through humanitarian crises, military interventions, and disrupted trade.
Investing in women is preventive security.
Research consistently shows that when women earn income, they reinvest most of it — up to 90 percent — back into their families and communities. That translates into better education, improved health outcomes, and stronger local economies. Societies with greater gender equality experience lower levels of violence and reduce likelihood of state failure. Women’s participation in governance is also correlated with more durable peace agreements and higher institutional accountability.In other words, empowering women strengthens states. Stronger states contribute to global stability. And global stability serves U.S. national interests.
At the same time, geopolitical competition in Africa is intensifying. China has made sweeping investments in infrastructure and resource extraction across the continent, securing access to critical minerals and expanding its strategic footprint. While these investments have reshaped trade dynamics, they are often transactional and extractive in nature.
The United States has an opportunity to differentiate itself.
A strategy centered on women’s economic empowerment would signal long-term commitment to inclusive growth and democratic resilience. Rather than competing solely for resources, the U.S. can compete for partnership — by investing in human capital, entrepreneurship, and governance systems that foster sustainable development.
This is not charity. It is strategic diplomacy.
Policy tools already exist. The United States can expand access to education for girls, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It can increase funding for women-owned businesses through microfinance, venture capital initiatives, and procurement access. It can invest in maternal health, reproductive health, and mental health services — not only as humanitarian measures, but as economic stabilizers that enable workforce participation. And it can partner with African governments to dismantle legal and structural barriers that limit women’s economic inclusion. But there is another strategic asset the United States has yet to fully leverage: African women of the diaspora.
Women of African origin who live and work in the United States occupy a unique position. They understand both American institutional frameworks and African political, cultural, and economic realities. Many possess transnational networks, multilingual capabilities, and professional expertise spanning law, public health, finance, technology, and governance.
They are bridges.
Engaging African women in the diaspora as strategic partners in diplomacy, commerce, cultural exchange, and development initiatives would strengthen U.S.– Africa relations in ways that traditional foreign policy tools cannot. These women are often deeply committed to advancing both American interests and transformative change within African communities. Their lived experience equips them to navigate complex environments, build trust, and implement solutions that are contextually informed and locally grounded.
In an era where influence is measured not only by military presence but by credibility and partnership, this matters.
As a woman of African origin who has lived and worked across borders, I have seen firsthand the transformative impact of opportunity. When women are empowered, their contributions ripple outward — from families to communities to nations. When they are excluded, the costs are generational.
The question is no longer whether the United States should engage Africa more strategically. It must. The continent’s demographic growth, economic potential, and geopolitical significance make disengagement impossible.
The real question is how.
If the United States continues to approach Africa primarily through the lens of resource competition or episodic crisis response, it will miss the deeper structural drivers of stability. But if it invests deliberately in women — in their education, businesses, health, leadership, and diaspora networks — it can help shape a future defined by partnership rather than instability.
National security in the 21st century is not only about defense budgets and troop deployments. It is about building resilient societies that are less vulnerable to conflict, coercion, and collapse. Investing in African women is one of the clearest, most cost-effective strategies to achieve that goal.
And the time to act is now.