The Women behind Change

For International Women’s day this year we celebrate women around the world who are working towards a goal and are dedicated to improving life for their communities and women everywhere.

This is just a small selection of the amazing work thousands of women are doing around the world to advance gender equity.

We celebrate these and all women this International Women’s Day as we continue to work and fight for a greater change and a greater future!

HRH Reema Bandar Al-Saud

As the first woman in Saudi Arabia’s history to serve in the role of Ambassador to the United states Her Royal Highness Princess Reema Bandar Al-Saud is making great strides in representation for woman.

In January 2024, Her Royal Highness spoke at the World Economic Forum on Saudi Arabia’s economy.

She is the Chair of Kayanee which is a lifestyle company focused on female wellbeing and empowering women to place their health as a priority. They create sportwear designed for the Saudi Woman designed to empower and relax women as they take care of themselves.

She is also the president of the Women’s committee and a member of the Board of Directors for the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee.

Tina Musuya

Tina is the executive director of Uganda’s centre for domestic violence prevention using an approach called SASA to prevent violence to girls and women in communities. Tina has helped so many to exit a dangerous situation through her work. The aim is to sensitise people to violence and change a belief system that has been telling them, violence is normal.

Tina says that she is fighting the patriarchy in Uganda and that is a belief system not any gender specifically.

By creating awareness of the dangers, educating communities, and bringing the situation to light, Tina has been able to reduce violence by 42% in the areas she has been able to reach.

SASA is an approach which has been adopted in at least 30 countries by over 75 organisations.

• S – Start
• A – Awareness
• S – Support
• A – Action

Sharnum Sarker

A young teen advisor for Girl Up, a programme which is a leadership development initiative, empowering thousands of women in 155 different countries. They deliver evidence-based leadership development training for girls allowing them to feel connected to a community advocating for policy change and advancing gender justice.

Sharnum is a University student and uses her skills to write for the Daily star to advocate for her beliefs and standing up for those who might not be able to. Her advocacy for menstrual equity and her commitment to raising funds for children who have experienced trafficking or sexual abuse to return to school shows an unwavering allegiance to her beliefs.

Granny Lesiamang

Granny is a young entrepreneur and the founder and director of a green technology startup in Botswana. This is a youth-led and Impact-driven startup which increases access to clean cooking by manufacturing solid biomass and low-cost, energy-efficient cookstove. This enables households to not have to rely on dirty fuels and improve the health of women whilst supporting economic opportunities.

Granny is a mining engineer through training and believed she could take this further. It was during the pandemic whilst she was at home with her family when she realised what was needed. She realised the struggle which so many families had to face when cooking in Botswana.

Families would use firewood to cook as just as Granny’s family they could not afford to use LPG gas in their homes. Granny learnt how dangerous the use of firewood in the household can be and the health hazard this causes to women as the primary caregiver in homes in Botswana.

Granny founded her own clean cooking manufacturing company, Clauseph Enterprises. They create low-cost, clean, and efficient biomass cookstoves and solid biomass fuel from bush trees. Clauseph Enterprises empowers the youth and women to elevate their voices into leadership.