History
In 1992, Ann Cotton travelled to rural Zimbabwe to investigate why girls' access to education in rural areas was so low. What she found surprised her. Contrary to the broadly-held notion that cultural resistance was the main reason so few girls were going to school, Ann discovered that family poverty was a more significant constraining factor. Could an economic solution unlock opportunities for addressing the widespread exclusion of girls from education? Could it lead to economic, social and cultural benefits for rural Africa?
In 1993, Ann started the Campaign for Female Education (Camfed) 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. The high attendance and retention rates of supported girls quickly proved parents’ commitment to their daughters’ education when direct costs were met. This is a pattern that has since been repeated in hundreds of communities in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana and Tanzania.
As the first group of girls supported by Camfed was due to complete secondary education, there was an urgent need to create post-school economic opportunities in their communities. Without such opportunities, educated young women would migrate to the cities and become vulnerable to economic and sexual exploitation and moreover, take the benefits of their education away from their rural communities. Against this background, the Camfed Alumni (Cama) was established in 1998 to connect young female school leavers and offer post-secondary school training opportunities, most crucially, in owning and managing money. Cama provides a structure through which its members can develop their activism and leadership to achieve positive social change. Today, Cama has a membership of 4,700 with structures that extend from village to district, national and pan-African levels and is one demonstration of the sustainability and efficacy of Camfed’s work.
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