The 12th session of the African Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (ARFSD-12), held in Addis Ababa from 28 to 30 April 2026, concluded with a historic call for radical action.Under the theme ‘Turning the Tide: Transformative and Coordinated Action’, more than 1,500 delegates adopted the Addis Ababa Declaration on Turning the Tide. This landmark document marks the end of the diagnostic phase: with only four years remaining until the 2030 deadline, Africa must urgently accelerate the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Addis Ababa Declaration: A Pact for Acceleration and Inclusion

The findings presented at the forum are alarming: Africa is lagging behind on 12 of the 17 SDGs and is regressing on five others. In response to this challenge, the Addis Ababa Declaration urges Member States to step up their efforts in five priority areas: water (SDG 6), energy (SDG 7), industry and innovation (SDG 9), sustainable cities (SDG 11) and partnerships (SDG 17).

At the heart of this strategy lies the principle of ‘Leave No One Behind’ (LNOB). The Declaration emphasises that progress is only genuine if it is achieved more rapidly among the most vulnerable groups, particularly women, young people and people with disabilities, who must be recognised as co-creators of development rather than mere beneficiaries.

FEMNET: Transforming the care economy to achieve genuine equality

Alongside the plenary sessions, FEMNET made a lasting impression with its side event: ‘Funding healthcare, promoting equality – Feminist and youth-led approaches to advancing the SDGs in Africa’. The message from feminist leaders is clear: there can be no social justice without economic justice.

FEMNET has called for the care economy to be placed at the heart of budgetary policies. In sub-Saharan Africa, women spend up to three times as much time as men on unpaid domestic work, a burden that acts as an invisible subsidy to failing public systems. The network proposes bold solutions, including the use of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) as instruments of feminist justice to fund health services and social infrastructure.