When fundraising for women and gender led initiatives we find that the money needs to be chased, the money needs to be convinced, the money needs to be influenced and the money needs to be aligned to our values. We will do all these things but we will not lose our integrity. The
By Korkor Cudjoe, Senior Manager, Entrepreneurship Programme As the year draws to a close, it offers a valuable opportunity to reflect on our achievements, insights, and challenges within the Women Creating Wealth (WCW) and Graça Machel Trust (GMT) Entrepreneurship Development Programme. These reflections not only showcase our progress but also help identify areas
Afrishela, the Graça Machel Trust's gender-lens investment initiative, demonstrated its transformative impact at the recent AVPA Conference. Jane Mbinya highlighted how investment lenses—child, gender, and displaced people—drive sustainable growth. She shared examples of businesses supported by the Trust, including food production in Kenya, health services in Tanzania, and digital financing in South Africa, which advance
During November's recent African Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA) Conference, Jane Mbinya, the Trust's Senior Investment Officer, highlighted how investment lenses drive sustainable growth. Speaking on the panel Intersectionality of the Investment Lenses, she explained how child, gender, and displaced people lenses intersect in the investment space. She shared case studies from the Trust's work, demonstrating
GMT Afrishela’s recent participation at the 2X Global Annual General Meeting was important in highlighting the challenges faced by underserved women in rural and informal sectors. By addressing gaps in gender financing and advocating for inclusive solutions, Afrishela is helping to amplify the voices of grassroots women. These efforts are driving systemic change, ensuring their
Barbados recently commemorated the UN International Day of the Slave Trade and its Abolition and Prime Minister HE Mia Mottley invited Mama Machel to be part the country’s reflection on this. Watch the incredible fire side chat Mama’s journey as an activist, freedom fighter and global advocate for women, children, education and much more,
The Trust's Investment Director, Andia Chakava, attended the Invest In Africa Summit in Amsterdam in April this year. She spoke at the "Doing Business in Africa" plenary and participated in a roundtable on funding mechanisms to scale sustainable agribusiness in Africa. The summit attracted over 1,000 key economic stakeholders, including government officials, policymakers, prominent African
The DVF Awards At the time of publishing this newsletter she had just been one of the honourees at the Diane von Furstenberg (DVF) Awards. The DVF Awards were founded in 2010 by the Diller-von Furstenberg Family Foundation to recognise and support extraordinary women. Each year, five awards are bestowed to women who have demonstrated
Championing women in agribusiness at Datagrow conference Mama Graça Machel addressed hundreds of agricultural professionals during the Brazil Datagrow Agribusiness Conference which took place in July 2024 - Sao Paulo, Brazil. She spoke about the crucial role of women in agribusiness, "We must tap into the untapped potential of women and youth as drivers
Adolescent Girls’ Movement expands across Africa Our Pan-African Girls' Movement, a pioneering initiative led by African adolescent girls, continues to grow. In Kenya, the Movement has partnered with the Forum for African Women Educationalists (FAWE) to create three "Nests" in Kiambu, Marakwet, and Narok counties, reaching over 500 adolescent girls. Similarly, in South Africa,
The Trust supports and mobilises civil society networks on issues of ending child marriage, ending violence against children, ending female genital mutilation and promoting children’s rights, to carry out advocacy and action across Africa. Special focus is placed on Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia where child marriage continues to be a problem largely driven by poverty, gender inequality, harmful traditional practices, conflict, low levels of literacy, limited opportunities for girls and weak or non-existent protective and preventive legal frameworks.
Education is a fundamental right for all children, which is also a vehicle for social, economic and political transformation in communities, countries and the African continent at large. Recent studies indicate a lack of progress in some of the critical commitments aimed at improving education quality, access, retention and achievement, particularly for girls. In most African countries, girls may face barriers to learning, especially when they reach post-primary levels of education. By implementing multi-dimensional approaches to education which includes core education, personal development, life skills and economic competencies, the Trust partners with funding partners, governments, civil societies and the private sector to improve education access.
The Nutrition and Reproductive, Maternal, New-born, Child and Adolescent Health and Nutrition, (RMNCAH+N) of the Children’s Rights and Development Programme aims at promoting the Global Strategy for women, children and adolescents’ health within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda. The strategy emphasises on the importance of effective country leadership as a common factor across countries making progress in improving the health of women, children and adolescents.
Through its Early Childhood Development (ECD) plan, The Trust will seek to put into action the new science and evidence Report that was presented by Lancet Series on Good and early development – the right of every child. This will be achieved by mobilising like-minded partners to contribute in the new science and evidence to reach all young children with ECD. The Trust’s goal is to be a catalyst for doing things differently, in particular, to rid fragmentation and lack of coordination across ECD sectors. In response to evidence showing the importance of political will in turning the tide against the current poor access and quality of ECD. Even before conception, starting with a mother’s health and social economic conditions, the early years of a child’s life form a fundamental foundation that determines whether a child will survive and thrive optimally.