According to the 2019 edition of the “Gender Profiles in Worldwide Patenting” report, that tracks trends in female inventorship, there is a much higher percentage of African women in Togo and Uganda associated with patent applications than any other countries in the world. The high percentages suggest a greater degree of gender equity may be practiced, as relates to scientific innovation, in those 2 countries and other African nations where percentages far exceed those in the United Kingdom and United States.
Given African gender parity that was more prominent in many precolonial societies prior to the imposition of foreign patriarchal values, the greater percentage of female inventors may represent a return to more equitable indigenous practices.These and other indicators of African female empowerment are advancements to celebrate. Click here to learn which other African nations have similarly achieved.