i.
SRHR · DSSR
Advocacy and community mobilisation for sexual and reproductive health and rights through our flagship BRAVE Programme.
BRAVE →
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Réseau des Femmes Leaders pour le Développement - Women Leaders Network for Development
A pan-African feminist network for a continent.
RFLD combines legislative advocacy, community organising, re-granting, and open-data tools to advance women's rights, SRHR, civic space, and climate justice across Africa.
US Tax Status
NGOsource 501(c)(3) ED
Certified · Tax-deductible
Recognition · AU
ACHPR Observer
WG on Human Rights Defenders
Co-Chair · 2026
GIZ / BMZ SEA-T
Programme Advisory Council
The Network · 2026
670
member organisations
+317 new in March 2026
$1.77M
Delivered 2025
85%
To the Field
15+
Countries
Continental Footprint
Cotonou · DakarFrancophone Hub
AccraAfrica Regional
BanjulACHPR Liaison
Newly Certified
NGOsource
501(c)(3)
EQUIVALENT
· MMXXVI ·
Major Milestone · 2026
For US partners:
direct · compliant ·
tax-deductible.
RFLD is now certified as a US 501(c)(3) Public Charity Equivalent by NGOsource — making us one of the most credentialed feminist intermediary organizations on the continent, alongside our ACHPR Observer Status.
US foundations may grant to RFLD directly — without expenditure responsibility, without fiscal sponsorship.
Donor-Advised Funds at Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard, NPT, CAF America and community foundations may recommend grants to RFLD.
Individual US donors — including the African diaspora — receive full tax deduction on direct gifts.
Workplace giving platforms (Benevity, Bright Funds) and employer matching are eligible.
RFLD is a pan-African feminist network anchored in francophone West Africa and operating continent-wide. We work at the intersection of law, policy, community organising, and data to defend and expand women's rights across six integrated fields: SRHR/DSSR, civic space and human rights, economic justice and climate, participatory governance, peace and security, and ending FGM and child marriage.
We combine direct programmes — PAWELE, BRAVE, Climate, Health, Ending FGM — with re-granting through the WAFF Fund and the Africa Grant Portfolio. In March 2026, 317 new member organisations joined our network, bringing the total to 670 across the continent.
We publish continental policy tools that serve as public infrastructure for African civil society: the Digital Safety Compendium, the Maputo Protocol Hub, the ACDEG Hub, AU Mechanisms Demystified, the West Africa Legislative Platform, and the Francophone Human Rights Hub.
"RFLD's sub-granting model is the most efficient we've seen. Their ability to reach grassroots organizations in fragile contexts while maintaining rigorous compliance is exceptional."
— Dr. Delia Nicoue · Advisor, GIZ
670
Network members
$1.77M
Delivered 2025
85%
To field
13yrs
Feminist delivery
Strategic Leadership Role · 2026
Programme Advisory Council
Co-Chair of
SEA-T.
GIZ · BMZ · Continental mandate.
RFLD currently serves as Co-Chair of the SEA-T Programme Advisory Council — providing strategic guidance to the SEA-T programme to ensure its direction, priorities, and resources are meaningfully aligned with the visions of Afro-feminist civil society.
2026
RFLD Co-Chair · SEA-T Advisory Council
BMZ
German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation & Development · funder
GIZ
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit · implementer
The Mandate
As Co-Chair, RFLD provides strategic guidance to the SEA-T programme — ensuring its direction, priorities, and resources are anchored in the lived realities and political visions of Afro-feminist civil society across the continent.
The Society · Equality · Africa · Transformation (SEA-T) Programme is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. RFLD's Co-Chair role places francophone West African feminist leadership at the centre of one of Europe's most significant African gender-equality investments.
Funder
BMZ
Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung — German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development
Implementer
GIZ GmbH
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit — Germany's flagship international cooperation agency
Institutional Donors · 2025
GIZ / BMZ
·
Sida
·
AmplifyChange
·
Packard Foundation
·
FJS
·
Expertise France
§ Six fields of intervention
Where law meets community — and data meets delivery.
ii.
Civic Space & Human Rights
Defending civic freedoms, supporting Women Human Rights Defenders, documenting and countering shrinking civic space.
WHRDs Report →
iii.
Economic Justice & Climate
Gender-sensitive budgets, climate action, and economic justice for women across francophone Africa.
Climate Action →
iv.
Participatory Governance
Women's political leadership (PAWELE Programme), ACDEG implementation, legislative tracking across West Africa.
PAWELE →
v.
Peace & Security
Women's inclusion in peace and security processes, regional dialogue, conflict prevention across ECOWAS.
Learn more →
vi.
Ending FGM & Child Marriage
Community-led abandonment of harmful practices, survivor-centred advocacy, and Maputo Protocol implementation.
Podcast →WAFF Fund · Re-granting
€250,000 allocated in 2025 to 10 feminist organisations
Demonstrating proven capacity to move resources to grassroots defenders across francophone West Africa.
Public Infrastructure
Continental tools.
Open. Bilingual. Built for scale.
Digital Safety
African Digital Safety Compendium
Continental reference on digital violence against women & civil society — protocols, case documentation, protection frameworks.
Women's Rights
Maputo Protocol Hub
Tracking ratification, domestication, and implementation of the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Women.
Governance
ACDEG Hub
African Charter on Democracy, Elections & Governance — leading civil society hub for ACDEG monitoring and advocacy.
Pan-African
AU Mechanisms Demystified
Guides for African civil society on navigating African Union mechanisms — accessible, actionable, bilingual.
Legislation
West Africa Legislative Platform
Tracking women's rights legislation across ECOWAS — the only consolidated public database of its kind for the region.
Francophone
Human Rights Hub · Francophone
Online human rights learning hub for francophone African civil society — built with GIZ funding, designed for grassroots reach.
Official Release · 2025
The Annual Report — now available.
The 2025 Annual Report marks a defining milestone in RFLD's evolution into a continental powerhouse for gender equity, human rights, and digital innovation across Africa.
$1,768,026 USD managed
With 85% of all funds directed directly into field activities — a testament to our commitment to frontline impact.
Trusted By Institutional Partners
GIZ / BMZ
✦
Sida
✦
AmplifyChange
✦
Packard Foundation
✦
FJS
✦
Expertise France
✦
USAID
✦
World Bank
✦
GIZ / BMZ
✦
Sida
✦
AmplifyChange
✦
Packard Foundation
✦
FJS
✦
Expertise France
✦
USAID
✦
World Bank
✦
Global Advocacy
From Banjul to New York.
Latest
13 May 2026
ACHPR · 87th Ordinary Session · Banjul
RFLD Statement to the African Commission
Delivered under Observer Status No. 553 at the 87th Ordinary Session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, Banjul, The Gambia.
Observer Status 553
87th Session
Banjul · 2026
Watch on YouTube →
ACHPR · 85th Session
Oral Statement to the African Commission
RFLD, as a recognized Member of the ACHPR Working Group on Human Rights Defenders, addressed the commission on critical protection mechanisms.
Read Full Statement →
CSW70 · New York
March 9–19, 2026 · UN HQ
Building the permanent machinery for gender justice
RFLD will be at CSW70 to ensure the voices of African women aren't just heard, but are empowered through systemic change.
Connect with RFLD
Ready to invest
in gender justice
across Africa?
Reach our leadership directly — for partnership inquiries, due diligence requests, or to schedule a briefing.
RFLD · Profile 2026 · NGOsource ED · ACHPR Observer · Co-Chair · GIZ/BMZ SEA-T Programme Advisory Council · rflgd.org