According to an old Chinese proverb, “women hold up half the sky”. In the battle against hunger and poverty, women, and especially rural women, most certainly hold up the heavier half. In order to ensure food security at the… Read more
The AWDF Blog
“I’m really excited that Leymah Gbowee alongside President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Tawakkul Karman have been jointly awarded the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Award. There seems no better time to publish the interview I held with her in 2008 on the… Read more
On the 4th of August 2011, I attended the ‘Adventurers in the Diaspora Series’ at Accra’s Golden Tulip. The topic for discussion was “Revitalising Ghana’s National Museum of Arts”, and judging by the huge turnout the subject was clearly… Read more
.jpg&h=150&w=150&zc=1&q=90)
In March 2011, AWDF recognised Professor Abena Busia as one of 50 inspirational African feminists so I am especially delighted that her achievements are being celebrated publicly (and in her lifetime) on Wednesday, 29th June from… Read more
AWDF has been working in diverse ways to ensure that women play an active role in transforming their lives, families, communities, nations and the world to ensure social justice and equal opportunity for all. A number of factors contribute to the… Read more
.jpg&h=150&w=150&zc=1&q=90)
In April, Zee and l set off on a trip to Zimbabwe and Malawi to monitor women’s organisations that have received grants from AWDF in the last 3 years. Preparations for this visit started in February amidst mixed feelings of anxiety and fear… Read more
I walked out of the airport confidently, ignoring all the traders who were trying to sell me sim cards, mobile phones or whatever else they had for sale. Then I stopped, slightly confused. Where’s the taxi stand? I wondered. I could see no taxis… Read more
Congratulations to Angela Dwamena-Aboagye of the Ark Foundation in Ghana for receiving a Millenium Excellence Award 2010 in the category of ‘Women’s Empowerment’. In 2005, the African Women’s Development Fund also recognised the Executive… Read more
Congratulations to Gifty Anti, Hostess of GTV’s ‘The Standpoint’. Gifty is receiving an award this evening at the ‘Creative Industry Women Honors’, an event being organised by the Musicians’ Union of Ghana. Gifty is one of Ghana’s… Read more
I missed the first couple of minutes of ‘The Witches of Gambaga’ documentary when it was premiered in Dakar, Senegal during the 3rd African Feminist Forum, yet in minutes I was gripped… the documentary took me back to Gambaga which I had… Read more
At the last Association of Women in Development Forum (AWID), I was one of a group of feminists that participated in a ‘Feminist Tech Exchange’, and since then I have been even more excited about the opportunity that technology holds for women’s… Read more
21st September 2010, at my desk, Oak Plaza Hotel, Accra, Ghana My day began at 4am when the Akina Mama onsite coordinator called my room to let me know that I have to be ready for my TV interview and that Sister Darkoa was going to chauffeur… Read more
A two-member team from AWDF and a documentary crew were in Liberia from the 3rd of August to the 7th of August to document the work and impact of AWDF in Liberia. In all the activities of 7 organisations and the testimonies of three women leaders… Read more
Today was the finale for the XVIII International Aids Conference and an appropriate time to reflect on all that I have learnt, seen and heard over the past week. This is the second International Aids Conference I have attended; I remember feeling… Read more
A couple of images I took today at the XVIII International Aids Conference in Vienna, of AWDF’s grantee partners. Nana Sekyiamah Programme Officer (Fundraising &… Read more
A young, energetic graduate responds to a call to volunteer her time and skills as an HIV peer educator and it becomes a life saver even though it did not appear so at that time. Then 27 years old and newly married, Ihe Nkeiru had just completed… Read more
When a friend suggested to Blessing Dickson, 17 years then that she accompanies her to an educational session at the offices of Girls Power Initiative (GPI) she was very reluctant. Not only was the meeting place a bus ride away, which she could… Read more
Saiadatu Bala Ahmed is a 22-year-old married woman from Adamawa State in Northern Nigeria. Saiada as she is usually called has had her life transformed after watching the Vagina monologues play (‘V’- monologues) in Lagos. Saiada lives… Read more
