Question: What do you need to empower communities to strive towards Gender Equality?
Answer: Inspiring and dedicated female role-models.
Question: Who are the inspiring role-models leading the way at Brass for Africa?
Answer: I’m glad you brass-ked! Let us show you.
Whether as teachers or running our operations, the Brass for Africa staff is full of examples of women who break bias and inspire others to follow in their footsteps. We feel we don’t celebrate them enough, so whilst we don’t have space here to celebrate all 15 of our fantastic female staff members, we spoke to a few of them to share their stories.
Meet Bena Wafula, Brass for Africa Monitoring and Evaluation Officer. She analyses impact and works with data to steer operations. She graduated university with a degree and diplomas in Information Systems, Computer Science and Entrepreneurship.
Bena described the challenges associated with becoming a woman in the workplace, “In Uganda, traditionally, women are not considered fit for the field of employment. Many today still think that women are not meant to work.”
Her goal is to change the ways in which women are perceived in the world of employment and to inspire others
“When I work, I do things as well as I can, because I want to inspire other women to enter jobs like this and have careers. I know the impact of role-modelling; I only went into university because I could see examples of women in ‘tech’, I wanted to do the same, if not better!”
In fact, a key focus of Brass for Africa is building a ‘Workforce Readiness’ for beneficiaries through the Music and Life-skills Curriculum. Within this strategic goal are life-changing employment opportunities that Brass for Africa offers for those who have come through programmes themselves.
Meet one such beneficiary of this opportunity, Brenda, a Music and Life Skills Teacher!
“I joined Brass for Africa as an office cleaner in 2017 and have never regretted it. When I was cleaning, I never thought that one day I’d know how to play an instrument, let alone teach it.”
Brenda joined a Brass for Africa Band and with her developing confidence, applied to the student volunteer programme. After one failed attempt, she bounced back and was accepted on her second try.
“I started to believe in myself, and I learnt to stand up and speak in front of a group, something I could never do before. After the course, I was accepted to join Brass for Africa as a full-time teacher.”
Brenda described how “becoming a teacher felt like the biggest accomplishment of my life, but looking back, I see it was just the start”.
Since becoming a teacher, she has completed her Grade 5 theory exam, and looks forward to completing her Grade 5 tenor horn next year.
“Aside from the accomplishments in my own playing and the playing of the classes I teach, Brass for Africa has also taught me how to stand up for my rights. I have learnt how to deal with the challenges that I face, to use my voice to speak up for myself. That is no small thing, and I am very proud of it. I want to support those who I teach to do the same.” she added.
Brenda then gave her advice to young women living in Uganda, but referenced the relevance it has across so much of Sub-Saharan Africa.
“As a girl it is so easy to think that you can’t do things, partly because it is what we are told from a young age. My advice is don’t give up and believe in yourself rather than what others tell you.”
Finally, we spoke to Sumayyah!
Sumayyah plays the tuba and has been a Music and Life-Skills teacher at Brass for Africa since 2021, having been one of the first participants of any Brass for Africa band.
“Through Brass for Africa I have been able to accomplish some great things, top of this has been finding out who I am and what I love. I have also had the chance to inspire lots of girls in our communities.”
When asked about her proudest accomplishments, Sumayyah modestly omitted having toured Europe in a top band and having delivered a keynote address at Forbes’ Africa Under 30 (a speech which received a standing ovation, you can watch it here). Finally, she has just been accepted to an international programme of musicians and teachers developing a curriculum for ‘Achieving Impact through Music’. She really is doing incredible things.
She spoke of the challenges she has had along the way, “Like any other journey, challenges are thrown at you, what matters is how you handle them. Not giving up when faced with a challenge is what we are taught right from the first lesson you get from Brass for Africa, it is something that music teaches you.”
Sumayyah gave her advice to young women, “To succeed, you need: determination, self-belief, a love of what you do, discipline, and taking on board advice from other people. I also advise you ‘to go for it’, whatever it is you want to do.”
Sumayyah, Brenda, and Bena are just three examples of the inspiring women at Brass for Africa. In their unique ways, they empower young women to follow their lead. Either through their example and role-modelling, or through the skills that they equip their students with, they have enormous impact on changing perceptions towards women in the workplace.
AND WHY IS IT SO IMPORTANT?
In lots of Sub-Saharan Africa, female unemployment is higher at 2.9% compared to 2.2% of males (according to the World Bank), but, while this is significant, it is not the most important reason. What’s significant is the type of employment women are in, according to the World Economic Forum, the job market for women is narrow and sits firmly in the service sector; catering, domestic work, retail etc. The division of labour along these fault-lines means that women are devoid of the chance to demonstrate their higher value skills, like critical thinking and problem solving. This entrenches stereotypes and deprives young women of role models and so the cycle repeats as it has done for generations.
It results in financial dependence on men, a lack of autonomy and the sole shouldering of domestic responsibilities.
However, equality in the workplace: prevents gender-based violence, provides economic resilience and will be a crucial cog in Africa’s economic and social development.
This kind of continental change requires action at local and national level. Your support has already transformed hundreds of young women and communities.
So, #EmbraceEquity this March and equip 150 disadvantaged girls with the ‘Workforce Readiness’ skills to realise their potential.
Your kindness is transformational. We’ve seen it a hundred times.
