Giving Compass' Take:

• The Young Women’s Leadership Initiative has expanded to East Africa and is now working with 40 young women leaders in women's rights organizations across Kenya and Tanzania. 

• If not globally, what can philanthropists do to invest in women's mentorships at the local level? 

• Read about the importance of supporting African youth leadership and development. 

With funding support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, we have expanded the Young Women’s Leadership Initiative to East Africa–in Kenya and Tanzania. Global Fund for Women is working with 40 young women from 20 women’s rights organizations across Kenya and Tanzania, to strengthen their leadership and support them as they create and implement their own community projects to create social change. The initiative in East Africa is currently in its first year, and Global Fund for Women will be tracking the initiative’s progress. As the initiative begins, meet some of the young women who are building our future:

Sekela Mwaipaja, Tanzania
“I have to represent other young women, because when I look back to where I’m coming from, not everybody gets a chance to stand up for themselves or other people. So being a young leader to me means a lot. It means I have to carry agendas that maybe other people would have wanted to carry, but they do not have a platform.” –Sekela Mwaipaja, Femina Hip, Tanzania

Phoebe Nyawira, Kenya
“Growth means I have created space for another woman. I want to see such an impact where I can be able to see what I have achieved from the point where I joined and when I leave. What keeps me going is the reality that community work is not easy but it’s very rewarding. You can see the journey—where you’ve started and where you’ve gotten to.” –Phoebe Nyawira, Centre for Domestic Training and Development, Kenya

Read the full article about young women leaders in East Africa at Global Fund for Women.