We’re immensely proud of the young feminists in the Challenging Patriarchy programme! Whether they’re starting their own grassroots intiatives, volunteering, or influencing decisionmakers, these changemakers are forging feminist futures in Africa.
The Challenging Patriarchy programme is a 12-month capacity strengthening initiative for young feminists in East Africa. The programme aims to build a cohort of young feminists through enhanced feminist advocacy capacity strengthening, who understand and challenge patriarchy as it affects their lived realities. Learn more about the programme here.
Some of the young feminists have sent us their reflections about their advocacy journeys and what they’ve learned as part of the programme. A few highlights:
Lucy Phillip is the founder of a community-based organisation named women to women, aiming to empower young women through education and training. She is based in Tanzania.
Ruth is a feminist from Ethiopia. She has a background in public health, sociology and gender studies. She has been involved in feminist advocacy and movements since university, and she currently works in gender programming and mainstreaming.
Nancy is a young grassroots feminist from in Kenya. She has expertise in leadership development, policy engagement, and young women’s empowerment and as an active member of the feminist stroke, women’s rights organisations, and is affiliated with numerous women’s rights organisations.
Martha is the founder and executive director of Tanzania Feminist Initiative, a young NGO in its second year based in Tanzania. The NGO focus is awareness raising on gender-based violence against adolescent girls and young women.
Hawi is a programme officer at a local NGO in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Her role involves working on research, women and advocacy. She also works in women’s empowerment and has participated in multiple advocacy campaigns tackling women’s rights. She is a co-founder of the Oromo Women’s Association.
Magdalena Thomas is a Tanzanian feminist and gender advisor currently working with MSI Reproductive Choices. She advocates for the rights of sexual reproductive health, ensuring quality services on family planning and Cervical Cancer.
Got questions about the Challenging Patriarchy programme? Write us on Twitter (with the hashtags #ChallengingPatriarchy #StrongAdvocacy) or if you’re an advocate, join our closed Facebook group.