CAMFED
Encyclopedia
Camfed - the Campaign for Female Education - is an international non-governmental, non-profit organization
dedicated to eradicating poverty in Africa
through the education of girls and the empowerment of young women. Camfed programs operate in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania and Malawi.
, after being inspired by her travels to Zimbabwe in 1992. In 1993, Ann started Camfed (then ‘Cambridge Female Education Trust’) by fund-raising at her kitchen table and the first 32 girls were supported into school in two of the most impoverished districts of Zimbabwe.
Anticipating the need for post-school economic opportunities in the students' communities, the Camfed Association (CAMA) was established in 1998 to connect young female school leavers and offer post-secondary school training opportunities in owning and managing money. CAMA provides a structure through which its members can develop their activism and leadershipe. Today, CAMA has a membership of 4,700 with structures that extend from village to district, national and pan-African levels.
• Camfed Zimbabwe, established in 1993
• Camfed USA, established in 2001
• Camfed Zambia, established in 2002
• Camfed Ghana, established in 2002
• Camfed Tanzania, established in 2007
where poverty is widespread, and girls and young women face massive exclusion from education and the opportunities that are afforded by education. Camfed works to build around girls a supportive environment in which they can attend, and succeed, at primary and secondary school, and progress into young adulthood with opportunities that include professional training, higher education and job creation.
By the end of 2008, Camfed had provided:
The majority of Cama members are now rural businesswomen, achieving economic independence, providing goods and services and becoming role models for younger generations. Camfed has trained 392 Cama members as teachers for rural areas. Cama's local philanthropy and activism has provided 71,838 children with financial support from their own communities.
Each year, 150 Cama members are chosen to participate in Camfed's Leadership and Enterprise program in Zambia. Through the program, Cama members established one of the first IT centers in rural Zambia. Media workshops involving video and the internet give young women in struggling communities the opportunity to develop business and leadership skills, with the hopes that they will go on to empower others in their community.
, former US President Bill Clinton
, journalist Allison Pearson
, author Doris Lessing
and actress Emma Watson
.
In 2009 the University of Cambridge
chose Camfed as its Charity of the Year as part of the University’s 800 year celebrations.
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
dedicated to eradicating poverty in Africa
Poverty in Africa
Poverty in Africa refers to the lack of basic human needs faced by certain segments of African society. African nations typically fall toward the bottom of any list measuring small size economic activity, such as income per capita or GDP per capita, despite a wealth of natural resources...
through the education of girls and the empowerment of young women. Camfed programs operate in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana, Tanzania and Malawi.
History
Camfed was founded by Ann CottonAnn Cotton
Ann Lesley Cotton is an entrepreneur and philanthropist who was awarded an Order of the British Empire in the 2006 Queen’s New Year Honours List...
, after being inspired by her travels to Zimbabwe in 1992. In 1993, Ann started Camfed (then ‘Cambridge Female Education Trust’) by fund-raising at her kitchen table and the first 32 girls were supported into school in two of the most impoverished districts of Zimbabwe.
Anticipating the need for post-school economic opportunities in the students' communities, the Camfed Association (CAMA) was established in 1998 to connect young female school leavers and offer post-secondary school training opportunities in owning and managing money. CAMA provides a structure through which its members can develop their activism and leadershipe. Today, CAMA has a membership of 4,700 with structures that extend from village to district, national and pan-African levels.
Organization
• Camfed International, the headquarters, a registered charity in the UK, established in 1993• Camfed Zimbabwe, established in 1993
• Camfed USA, established in 2001
• Camfed Zambia, established in 2002
• Camfed Ghana, established in 2002
• Camfed Tanzania, established in 2007
Work
Camfed focuses on rural areas of AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
where poverty is widespread, and girls and young women face massive exclusion from education and the opportunities that are afforded by education. Camfed works to build around girls a supportive environment in which they can attend, and succeed, at primary and secondary school, and progress into young adulthood with opportunities that include professional training, higher education and job creation.
By the end of 2008, Camfed had provided:
- 645,400 children in 1,984 of the poorest communities in rural Ghana, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe with access to a safer, improved school environment
- 331,532 of these children with financial support to go to school
- 39,330 girls with comprehensive support throughout the full four or five years of their secondary education - the time most girls are lost to education through poverty, but where the highest gains in terms of future health and prosperity are achieved
Cama
Cama refers to the Camfed alumni, founded in 1998. Cama members reinvest the benefits of their own education into their families and communities. They have set up their own pan-African organization, Cama (the Camfed Association), which has more than 7,900 members – among them doctors, lawyers and teachers.The majority of Cama members are now rural businesswomen, achieving economic independence, providing goods and services and becoming role models for younger generations. Camfed has trained 392 Cama members as teachers for rural areas. Cama's local philanthropy and activism has provided 71,838 children with financial support from their own communities.
Each year, 150 Cama members are chosen to participate in Camfed's Leadership and Enterprise program in Zambia. Through the program, Cama members established one of the first IT centers in rural Zambia. Media workshops involving video and the internet give young women in struggling communities the opportunity to develop business and leadership skills, with the hopes that they will go on to empower others in their community.
Notable supporters
Camfed is endorsed by actor Morgan FreemanMorgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...
, former US President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, journalist Allison Pearson
Allison Pearson
Allison Pearson is a Welsh author and newspaper columnist. Her novel I Don't Know How She Does It, published in 2002, has sold four million copies and has been made into a movie of the same name starring Sarah Jessica Parker...
, author Doris Lessing
Doris Lessing
Doris May Lessing CH is a British writer. Her novels include The Grass is Singing, The Golden Notebook, and five novels collectively known as Canopus in Argos....
and actress Emma Watson
Emma Watson
Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson is an English actress and model.Watson rose to prominence playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter film series. Watson was cast as Hermione at the age of nine, having previously acted only in school plays. From 2001 to 2011, she starred in all eight Harry Potter...
.
In 2009 the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
chose Camfed as its Charity of the Year as part of the University’s 800 year celebrations.
Further reading
- I Have a Story to Tell: Celebrating Ten Years of CAMFED International, CAMFED International, 2004 ISBN 0-9532907-1-9