Women's leadership

Soledad O’Brien, CEO; Journalist; Producer; and Philanthropist sits down with Angeline Murimirwa, Executive Director – Africa, CAMFED (2021 Prize Laureate) at the 2022 Hilton Humanitarian Symposium and Prize Ceremony themed “The Power of Perseverance,” in Beverly Hills, California. Angeline talks about how that power is embodied by the CAMFED Association of women leaders – who face challenges like COVID-19 and climate change head on, to keep girls safe and learning. 

July 2021

In this seminal article, Dzingai Mutumbuka, first minister of education and culture for Zimbabwe, and Vongai Nyahunzvi, head of the Africa region at Teach For All, describe the necessary process of decolonizing aid and mindsets, and investing in youth leadership across Africa. They cite CAMFED’s grassroots-driven program, with thousands if graduates mentoring the next generation, and paying school fees, providing not only access to education but tackling issues from child marriage to climate change. 

On November 13th, CAMFED Tanzania met with 31 members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee for Social Welfare and Community Development.

At the meeting, former Learner Guides Diris Martin and Stumai Kaguna, who now train others, joined Lydia Wilbard, National Director of CAMFED Tanzania.

Together, they spoke about the program and the changes in their own lives and those of the children Learner Guides support. 

Girls’ education champion and former First Lady Michelle Obama marked International Day of the Girl with the launch of a new Global Girls Alliance, and welcomed our young women leaders in the CAMFED Association.  Mrs Obama and CAMFED Association leaders – who are powerful and passionate girls’ education activists working across rural sub-Saharan Africa – have long partnered around the belief that champions at the grassroots are best positioned to make girls’ education a reality for the poorest girls.

On International Women’s Day, Angeline Murimirwa, CAMFED Executive Director – Africa, joined an inspirational panel chaired by Anne McElvoy, Senior Editor of The Economist, with HRH The Duchess of Sussex (in her new role as Vice-President of The Queen’s Commonwealth Trust),  CAMFED Patron the Hon Julia Gillard AC, singer-songwriter and global activist Annie Lennox OBE, model and activist Adwoa Aboah, and Chrisann Jarret. They discussed the hurdles that remain for women and girls globally, and called on the audience to act now for gender equality. 

2018 Research

Women’s leadership is associated with positive environmental action, as well as improved adaptation and resilience to climate disasters. In Gender and climate change: Do female parliamentarians make difference? Mavisakalyan and Tarverdi demonstrate that women’s political leadership is associated with more stringent climate policies and results in lower CO2 emissions, for example.

Educated women are also better equipped to innovate and champion climate-smart technologies, and engage in national and international leadership for sustainable growth.

Now, as the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to roll back decades of progress, REAL Centre research into effective education interventions is more important than ever to inform collective, evidence-led action.

One such paper, an in-depth cost-effectiveness analysis of CAMFED’s program in Tanzania, was published today in the Journal of Development Effectiveness. It suggests that education initiatives that focus on the particular needs of the most marginalized should become a priority for international aid, because research data shows that they benefit all children.

The United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI) has launched a new report and policy note on ‘Transformative political leadership to promote 12 years of quality education for all girls.’ Prepared by the Research for Equitable Access and Learning (REAL) Centre at the University of Cambridge, the paper addresses the urgent need to identify ways in which high-level political leadership can be mobilized to generate concrete action for girls’ education, and includes data from CAMFED’s program.

From July 10th-15th in Johannesburg South Africa, the Obama Foundation’s Leaders: Africa program brought together 200 emerging leaders from 45 countries across the continent, exploring new ways to take on the biggest challenges in their communities. Angeline Murimirwa, CAMFED Executive Director - Africa, joined a discussion on leadership with Tsehaitu "Tubi" Retta, Deputy Director of the Obama Foundation, exploring how all of us benefit when girls receive access to quality education.