An African Initiative to Strengthen Resilience
The continental campaign #BuildingResilience, led by the Organization of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD), reflects a collective effort to address the growing vulnerabilities facing African societies.
In a context marked by:
women and girls emerge as both the most exposed and the central drivers of resilience within families and communities.
This continental initiative is grounded in a strong conviction:
resilience cannot be sustainable unless it is structured, supported, and collectively driven.
Through this campaign, OAFLAD calls for:
Strengthening social and health protection systems
Supporting women in their central role within families and communities
Developing coordinated responses tailored to local realities
The #BuildingResilience campaign therefore provides a continental framework for mobilization, fostering the exchange of experiences, coordination of actions, and the development of sustainable solutions.
Gabon's Strategic Choice
Faced with the challenges of our time, Gabon has made a clear choice:
To contribute to the continental #BuildingResilience initiative by placing health and family stability at the core of its commitment.
This choice is based on a simple conviction:
Resilience cannot be declared. It must be built.
It is built through contact with reality, by listening to those who carry the weight of vulnerability every day.
Before the conference, the First Lady chose to go and meet women directly. From April 7 to 13, she visited 18 neighbourhoods, including the most vulnerable, in Libreville, Akanda, Owendo and Ntoum.
An approach deliberately rooted in working-class neighbourhoods, as close as possible to everyday realities.
On the ground, women spoke up to share their daily realities, their difficulties accessing healthcare, but also their expectations and their hopes.
« We start treatments, but we can't always see them through. »
« Sometimes, we face hardship alone. »
From these encounters, three major challenges emerged:
The BALANCE Programme 2026–2029, part of the national CAP 241 framework, represents Gabon's contribution to this African initiative.
It reflects a strong commitment:
Gabon affirms a clear position:
Health is not a sectoral policy.
It is a condition for stability.
It is a lever for sustainable resilience.
“On this day of April 17, National Women's Day in Gabon, I wish to address each and every one of you. To those present here. To those working in our cities, in our villages, in our homes. And to those whose commitment, often unseen, continues to sustain our society.”
Discover the structural framework behind this vision.