Greetings!
Happy New Year to you. I trust this new year meets you in good spirits and health.
2008 was a great year for us at AWDF, thanks to the support and partnerships we have had with grantees, donors, and partner organizations. On behalf of the Executive Board and staff of AWDF I would like to say thank you for believing in AWDF, thank you for believing in the African Women's Movement and thank you for your support for over 800 African women's organisations. Your support has meant that in 2008 AWDF accomplished the following:
- Disbursed grants of over U$3.8m to African women's organizations. This means that over the past 8 years, AWDF has disbursed US$10,000,000 to over 800 African women's organisations in 41 countries
- Built on our endowment campaign by attracting donations from around the world, and investing in office buildings , which we commissioned on November 27th 2008
- Raised €5m from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MDG3 Fund) after going through a highly competitive and rigorous selection process
- Convened a successful 2nd African Feminist Forum in Kampala, Uganda
- In conjunction with Resource Alliance (UK) and the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, launched a 20 day Resource Mobilisation Certificate Course for civil society groups in Africa
- Held a successful capacity building programme for our grantees on women's political participation and transformational leadership
- Participated in, and provided technical assistance to various networks, convenings and conferences including the Association for Women's Rights in Development (2008 AWID Forum) and the African Development Forum convened by the UN/ECA and the African Union
- Held monitoring and evaluation visits to grantees in Zambia, Malawi, Swaziland, South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda
- Continued to build on our knowledge production for the African Women's Movement by publishing various resource materials including 'Where is the Money for African Women's Organisations', 'Financing for Development' and a progress report on our HIV/AIDS fund
- Provided capacity building and solidarity grants to enable our grantees strengthen their networking and leadership skills. Through our support, grantees were able to participate in the 2008 Commission on the Status of Women in New York, attend the International Workshop on Resource Mobilisation in Malaysia, the XVII International Aids Conference in Mexico, and the International Conference on AIDS and STI in Africa in Senegal
- Continued to invest in our own capacity as an Africa-wide grantmaking foundation, and ensuring a commitment to being part of a broader community of social change grantmakers.
In 2009 we will need your continued support to enable us continue working with hundreds of African women's organisations. Please put your money where your heart is by making a donation to the African Women's Development Fund. Visit http://www.awdf.org now to make your donation. Sincerely, Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi Executive Director
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