EXPRESS: Listen to Africa: nothing about us without us

Africa’s 54 sovereign countries represent unparalleled linguistic, cultural, and developmental diversities; however, structural inequities constrain representation and influence in global science. Within the field of child development and education this shapes how studies are designed, interpreted, and disseminated, often reinforcing deficit models of child development. This opinion piece firstly aims to identify the most pressing challenges and barriers underlying the shortage of research knowledge from Africa for the fields of child development and education, and the opportunities for global research output and policy innovation in this field. Secondly, this article aims to identify recent advancements that have led to a reduction in this inequity in child development research, as well as proposed goals for further solutions for the future. To enhance equitable representation, we draw on insights from a survey and knowledge-exchange focus groups that included N = 60 researchers from 17 African countries who are part of the African Brain and Cognitive Development (AfriBCD) Network. Significant systemic and resource-based challenges that impact funding opportunities, career development, networking, knowledge generation and infrastructure are identified. Current solutions to these challenges and priorities to drive further change range from investing in equitable partnerships, providing targeted early-career support and career development opportunities, prioritizing bidirectional capacity building, grounding research in culture and context and co-creating international funding agendas with African stakeholders. We argue for a paradigm shift that positions Africa as a global knowledge generator for child development and education, emphasizing the collaborative principle of “nothing about us without us.”