African Women in Development
African Women in Development (AWID) is a campaign organized by Donors for Africa Foundation to commemorate “International Women’s Day”.
It is designed to find, document, and tell the stories of African women leading change in development. These are women who are often unseen. Some of them run their own organizations while much more lead in outstanding roles within their organizations.
The award recognizes outstanding African women activists, change-makers, government representatives, and social entrepreneurs, who are transforming lives in their communities and countries, helping to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
Hosted for three years, we have received over 1500 entries from 21 African countries and our final selection is made based on merit by an independent selection committee who reviews their profile, impact, demography, country and areas of focus.
These women are selected from the East, West, North, Southern Africa, and the Diaspora to highlight the impact of their work to development in the region.
We strongly believe that many women deliver impressive innovations every day and go un-noticed and their successes undocumented. The awards are to ensure that impact stories and best practices in social entrepreneurship are replicated to guarantee consistent development and achievement of the SDGs.
The recognition by Donors for Africa Foundation, led to increased visibility and I was constantly approached by leading brands globally for collaboration and invitations to join CSR/Executive advisory boards. It put me on a different level on the global scene especially in the development space.
Uzoamaka Amalu
Founder, Project Lead
The award recipients remind us that there is no lack of ideas or talent, but rather a dearth of support mechanisms required for women in development to thrive and remain active transformers to economies.