Women in Management, Africa

How do we empower women in leadership across Africa to break the glass ceiling?

The task

Structural, cultural, and personal barriers such as gender bias, lack of mentorship, unequal opportunities, and lack of self-belief often prevent women from breaking the glass ceiling.

This is what Danida Fellowship Centre is striving to address through the 'Women in Management' programme in Tanzania, Africa, where they annually gather around 25 women in leadership roles from different sectors and countries.

For the third year in a row, Gry Guldberg was in Tanzania in late summer 2024 to facilitate the program, this time in close collaboration with Tana Copenhagen.

The solution

Gry Guldberg was responsible for ensuring a well-structured and robust professional program for the participants as both program coordinator and lead facilitator. She taught several sessions, including "Management versus Leadership," "Impactful Communication," and "Feminine Leadership."

The concept of feminine leadership is not about femininity nor is it a counterpart to masculine energy. Rather, feminine energy encompasses qualities such as regeneration, learning and respect. It is about the ability to step back, reflect and recognize oneself. When participants understand how their actions and ways of being affect the systems they are part of – be it their body, family, colleagues or organisation – they can lead with greater awareness and balance.

Trine Blichfeldt, Communications Advisor at Transforming, facilitated a session on "Personal Branding and Networking," where participants gained tools to work on their professional identity on LinkedIn, helping them gain visibility and highlight their expertise to position themselves more effectively in the job market.

In addition to Gry and Trine, the facilitator team included Grace Muchunu, Mary Alice Bamusiime, Doris Ndewa Likwelile, and Makena Mwobobia.

Gry Guldberg has been a teacher for the past three Women in Management programs, from 2022 to 2024.

Instructor Mary Alice Bamusiime facilitated a session on the historical development of human rights, with a particular focus on the rights of women in their respective countries.

The result

In addition to their professional development, the programme strengthened the leaders' inner resilience, provided them with valuable networking connections and created strategic opportunities that promote sustainable development for themselves, their organisations and their communities.

Both Gry Guldberg, Trine Blichfeldt, and the programme as a whole received excellent evaluations from the participants upon completion.

The learning programme is an ongoing initiative under Danida Fellowship Centre and takes place at MS TCDC in Arusha, Tanzania.

The 25 participating leaders work in various sectors and come from 10 African countries: Burkina Faso, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, Somalia, Tanzania and Uganda.

“

What the participants said about the programme

“The training has deepened my understanding of women’s unique challenges and opportunities in leadership roles. It provided me with practical tools and strategies to navigate these challenges.”

Marwa Hussein, Communications and Social Responsibility Manager, Environmental Compliance Office and Sustainable Development Federation of Egyptian Industries, Egypt.

“This is the first time I have participated in such a training that has sparked a true transformation journey in my leadership and career development.

I came in as an average manager with low self-esteem and confidence, knowing little about gender concepts, self-leadership and feminine leadership but I walk away as a rejuvenated manager with a renewed sense of self awareness, confidence, courage and ready to adopt a more feminine leadership style to drive sustainable results with my team.

I will apply the knowledge acquired on gender to make my organization more gender sensitive and responsive.

I thank DFC for this lifetime opportunity to become the best manager in my organization.”