Françoise Moudouthe, Cameroon

A pan-African feminist with roots in Cameroon, Françoise Moudouthe is passionate about supporting African feminist movements to thrive. In January 2021, she became the CEO of the African Women’s Development Fund, a pan-African women's fund that provides financial and other resources to African women's organizations working towards the fulfillment of all African women's rights. Prior to joining AWDF, Françoise established Eyala, a bilingual platform that amplifies the voices and lived experiences of African feminists, and worked as an international consultant for gender justice in Africa. Earlier in her career, she played an instrumental role in setting up Girls Not Brides, the global civil society partnership to end child marriage, and in spearheading its growth in Africa. Françoise is a Board member of  the Equality Fund and Prospera.

In this episode, Françoise discusses how her many conversations with women throughout her life fostered an early fascination with justice and ignited her passion for activism and movements to end injustice… being an outspoken girl, growing up in Cameroon, and using her voice to make her opinions known… moving to France as a teenager with her mother and the adversities that her mother faced because her competencies were not recognized in her new country… what Françoise learned from her mother’s decisions and how they shaped her own choices about who she is and about and how she uses her voice… learning about feminism from conversations with, and the actions of,  women working to address the structural inequities they face…. defining her identity as an African feminist who is passionate about ensuring that movements work, and thrive… loving to make space for those who are systematically marginalized by listening to their stories and amplifying their stories and their voices… understanding that there is knowledge and power in our daily stories… the importance of creating space for people, and particularly women, to ask questions and reacting to those with empathy, and not judgment.  (Cameroon)