Development and humanitarian action needs to start from a position of locally rooted leadership, according to CAMFED’s CEO Angeline Murimirwa and Executive Director of Learning and Engagement Lydia Wilbard.
“The shifting of power into locally-led development, I am sometimes wondering why are we even calling it a shift. It should begin there,” Wilbard said. CAMFED, the Campaign for Female Education, has so far supported more than 6.4 million children from rural communities across Africa to attend school. The organization, which was awarded the Hilton Humanitarian Prize in 2021, involves communities directly in the decision-making process to determine which girls are selected for support, Wilbard explained.
Murimirwa herself is a CAMFED graduate, having received a scholarship at the age of 12, when she was on the brink of dropping out of school, which enabled her to continue with her education. “To date, this is a point of celebration for the community, because my community was included when that decision for my selection was made,” she said. Both Murimirwa and Wilbard were founding members of the CAMFED Association — a network of young women leaders educated with CAMFED support, which now numbers over a quarter of a million across Africa — in their respective countries of Zimbabwe and Tanzania.
About the author
Naomi Mihara
Naomi Mihara is an Associate Editor for Devex, working on creative and audiovisual projects. She has a background in journalism and international development, having previously served as an assistant correspondent for Japanese newspaper The Yomiuri Shimbun and as a communications officer for the International Organization for Migration in Southeast Asia. She holds a master’s degree in Multimedia Journalism from Bournemouth University.
