From Rural Poverty to International Leadership on Girls’ Education: CAMA in Washington, D.C

Dec. 12, 2014 - PRLog -- Today, Angeline Murimirwa, one of the first graduates of Camfed’s community-led education programs in rural Africa - and now Camfed Regional Executive Director - will join First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama, Julia Gillard of the Brookings Center for Universal Education and other education experts on a panel entitled Mobilizing for Children’s Rights, Supporting Local Leaders and Improving Girls’ Education. The event will be webcast today from 12 PM to 3 PM EST (5 PM – 8 PM GMT).

Only Girls’ and Young Women’s Leadership can Sustain Progress in Education
“I am honored to join other change leaders in exploring how girls and young women can lead the movement for girls’ education,” says Angeline Murimirwa. “Young women, who have gained access to education in spite of the barriers, are the experts in what works. They are the key if we are to be truly transformational. Only with their leadership can progress be achieved and sustained.” Angeline will draw on her personal experience of rural poverty and exclusion to deepen the international community’s understanding of the barriers to securing every girl’s right to a quality education.

CAMA: Girls and Young Women Overcoming the Odds, Advocating for Change
At Brookings, Angeline is representing CAMA, the over 24,000 strong alumnae network of young women supported through school by Camfed, set to grow to over 130,000 in the next five years. CAMA was founded in 1998 by Angeline and some of the other first young women to complete secondary education with Camfed’s support. Camfed, together with CAMA, ignites community-led activism by rallying all the resources necessary to help girls succeed against the odds.  The financial, emotional and institutional support provided enables the most marginalized girls to go to school and learn, and to step up as leaders of change. CAMA exemplifies the success of a model that recognizes girls’ experience, tenacity and wisdom, allowing them to access policy platforms and lead in the design and delivery of education programs, unlocking the extraordinary potential that results from investing in female education.

First Lady Michelle Obama Underscores Community-Based Solutions in Girls’ Education
Today’s event is a discussion on how local leadership and community-based solutions like Camfed’s and CAMA’s can help advance girls’ education around the world. The opening panel, featuring Angeline Murimirwa, Gene Sperling and Julia Gillard of the Center for Universal Education, and Urvashi Sahni of the Study Hall Education Foundation, will discuss the status of girls’ education globally, highlighting where progress has been made and challenges remain, and how supporting local leaders can play a catalytic role in policy change at regional, national and global levels. First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama will then address community-based solutions in girls’ education in her keynote remarks. Mrs. Obama’s address will be followed by a panel discussion featuring further experts in the field. The webcast audience can follow the discussion on Twitter with the hashtag #GirlsEdu.

Young Women’s Experience, Tenacity and Wisdom Should Inform Action under CHARGE
“As partners in the Clinton Foundation’s Girls CHARGE (Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls’ Education) Initiative, Camfed and CAMA are bringing their experience of young women’s empowerment and leadership to the table,” says Camfed CEO Lucy Lake, who is also in Washington, D.C. today. “We can show by example the transformative potential of a network of empowered young women who are leading change for the younger generation of girls.”

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About Camfed:
Camfed is an international non-profit organisation tackling poverty and inequality by supporting girls to go to school and succeed, and empowering young women to step up as leaders of change. Camfed invests in girls and women in the poorest rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa, where girls face acute disadvantage, and where their education has transformative potential. Since 1993, Camfed’s innovative education programmes have benefitted over 3 million children in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania and Malawi. In 2014, Camfed was recognised by the OECD for best practice in taking development innovation to scale.

As a partner in the Clinton Foundation’s Girls CHARGE (Collaborative for Harnessing Ambition and Resources for Girls’ Education) Initiative, Camfed is making an historic commitment to support 1 million African girls through secondary education, enabling them to transition to a secure livelihood, and to become leaders of change, empowering their communities. Millions more children will benefit as a result. Camfed International in based in Cambridge, UK and Camfed USA is based in San Francisco. For more information, please visit www.camfed.org.