 Nosipho Dumisa is a pioneer. She is one of the few black female directors making a name for themselves in the South African film and television industry. Her debut feature film, Nommer 37, was praised by many reviews for being one of South Africansâ âworld classâ films. Itâs a crime-thriller set in the Cape
 Eva Kapinga is a social entrepreneur who is passionate about assisting rural women access funding and skills to grow their business and realise sustainability. This idea grew on Eva in 2016 when she attended a Village Community Banking (VICOBA) seminar in 2016. During this seminar she learnt about the Mata Masu Dubara (MMD) project
âIf you know your passion, and you are determined to reach your dream, then work hard, stay focused and nothing will be impossible in your journey of successâ â Jacqueline Baruti   Jacqueline Baruti has been running her furniture business for over five years. She is a beneficiary of the Graça Machel Trustâs Women
Tanzania Government orders for special line for reporting sexual harassment cases in media houses  âI encourage my fellow women journalists to speak out against sexual harassment in newsrooms. We have many institutions that are ready to build our capacity and enable us understand more about our worth as journalists and how well we should
Photo: UCT Brenton Geach Screenshot  âYou have been a faithful support to me and my predecessors. You have stood with UCT at our most vulnerable times as our mother, our elder and our conscience. You have shared our anger and our joy. You are a woman of action and by your example
 My first encounter with the concept of Climate Change was in 2015 as a student volunteer for an organisation that was drafting an African youth position paper on Climate Change in the build-up to COP 21 in Paris, France. Before this, the idea of global warming was something I had a limited understanding of.
 "Sexual violence and the exploitation of children represents our shortcomings as a society in our responsibility to protect our children,"- Graça Machel.   Child sexual exploitation is a form of sexual abuse that all of us must not turn a blind eye on. Sometimes, a child is abused by a person they trust. When
 Beatrice Kajiru Matau is a Tanzania business woman who is making headway in the transport and logistics sector in east and southern Africa. Brought up by a determined and entrepreneurial single parent who owned a retail shop and bred poultry, inspired her from an early age. At home when Beatrice, the youngest of five children,
The Africa for Africa Womenâs conference on Africaâs Transformational Leadership Summit hosted in Cape Town from the 30th of September to the 1st of October was a firm reminder that there is a lot of work that needs to be done to address the status quo that has been set by society and institutions regarding gender
 The concept of âchild marriageâ is a misleading justification of child abuse. Why do we call this harmful practice a marriage? By definition, a marriage according to Mani Shankar is a commitment between two adults with a primary purpose of leading a happy, peaceful and prosperous life amidst all the problems that may come up.
The Trust supports and mobilises civil society networks on issues of ending child marriage, ending violence against children, ending female genital mutilation and promoting childrenâs 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 Childrenâs Rights and Development Programme aims at promoting the Global Strategy for women, children and adolescentsâ 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 Trustâs 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 motherâs health and social economic conditions, the early years of a childâs life form a fundamental foundation that determines whether a child will survive and thrive optimally.