In Epworth and Umzingwane, the delegation explored marketplaces built under the EU-funded Global Spotlight Initiative Programme, which provide safer environments and child-friendly spaces to support women in business. In Bulawayo, they visited the Maker Space hub, a centre for advanced textile technology that enables women-led businesses to improve the efficiency of their production and the quality of their products.
In Murehwa, Board members saw the Dura reruZivo-Ulwazi Feminist Knowledge Hub and the African Girls Can Code Initiative at work. There, young women shared powerful testimonies: “Digital skills are a gateway to independence and opportunity for women in rural Zimbabwe,” stated one participant.
The Board attended high-level meetings with government officials, including Amon Murwira, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade; Senator Monica Mutsvangwa, Minister of Women Affairs, Community, and Small and Medium Enterprises Development; and Jacob Francis Mudenda, Speaker of Parliament, discussing strategies to enhance policies supporting women’s economic empowerment. As Speaker Mudenda emphasized, “Ensuring women’s full participation in governance and business will drive Zimbabwe forward into a more inclusive future.”